Running Home
by TheLittleImp
Summary: Who was Wally before he became Kidflash? This is a look at his life.
1. Chapter 1

Running Home

"Wallace," the voice of the teacher said, breaking through Wally's distracted thoughts.

"Yes, Ms. Kats," Wally said pulling his eyes from the window. He looked up at his teacher. It was so beautiful outside, and he would have much rather been out there than inside for hours waiting for the bell to ring.

"Why aren't you taking your test?" Ms. Kats asked kindly. She loved being a teacher. Some days she wondered what she had been thinking picking this career, but everyone had those moments.

"I finished it," Wally explained. His face had gone as red as his hair. He didn't like having the whole class looking at him, like he was a nerd. Sure he was smart and he knew it, but that didn't mean he wanted everyone calling him a nerd. Most of the kids in his class were his friends, but that didn't change how he felt.

The rest of school passed without any excitement for Wally. He wished that school lasted longer. He didn't want to go home just yet. Wally got to his feet as the bell rang loudly.

"Wallace, could I talk to you for a minute?" Ms. Kats asked smiling, but Wally could see that something was bothering her.

He stood in front of her desk as the other kids filed out of the class room.

"Is everything okay?" Ms. Kats asked.

"Yes," Wally answered. Why wouldn't it be? He was a little confused as to why he had to stay behind. He'd been getting A's, he hadn't had any problems with the others, and he hadn't been causing trouble in class.

"Well, you haven't been very…," she struggled for the right word. "Active in the class room." she said finally.

"But my grades-" Wally started. Sure he had been quiet lately, but he was doing his school work and it wasn't like the teachers liked it when the kids talked during class.

Ms. Kats put up a hand to stop him. "Have been good, excellent in fact, but you don't respond when I talk to you. I find you looking out the window almost all day. In short you're distracted. Can you tell me why?" Ms. Kats asked patiently. She was a little worried. This wasn't like Wally. He loved school. His hand was the first to shoot up when she asked a question about what they had been learning.

"I don't know," Wally said shortly. He looked down at his worn sneakers. "Ms. Kats, can I go now? I'll miss the bus."

"Alright, Wallace. I'll see you on Monday," Ms. Kats answered. She didn't know what to make of the ten year old's behavior. She would try and find out at the beginning of next week.

The bus ride home wasn't very long, but it gave Wally time to think without shouting in the back ground. He knew what was distracting him. He didn't mean to be, but it was hard to think about school when all he could think about was his parents.

Wally's dad had lost his job a few months ago and he couldn't find another one. His mom's job paid next to nothing. They had just gone through the last of their savings. To get to the point, things were hard.

Wally's parents had been fighting nonstop. He understood that married people fought. It was part of life, but this was different. This was all the time from the time his mom left for work and it would start up again the second his dad walked through the door from spending the day looking for a job. Wally would stay in his room and listen to them. Sometimes he would side with his mom and other times he saw where his dad was coming from. He never said anything while this was going on; he knew it would only make things worse.

The bus stopped and Wally and a few others got off. He walked the rest of the way home. He had always liked going on walks. He and his parents used to walk down to the park that was near their house, but they hadn't gone in a while. His mom was working double shifts, and his dad was trying to find some kind of job. There wasn't time for walks to the park anymore.

It was so calm and peaceful out. The trees were starting to bud and soon school would be out for the summer. Wally couldn't decide if he was happy to be on break or not. He loved to be outside, but he would be home all day and there would be no escaping the fighting. Maybe his dad would find a job and everything could be like how it used to.

Wally reached his small house. He was surprised to see his mom's blue car in the driveway. She should have been at work until five o'clock, and it was only three-thirty.

"I've had it, Rudolph!" Wally heard his mom scream. All of the neighbors could hear her, too. Wally's face turned red at the thought. They must think the worst of the Wests. "I'm leaving!" She said stuff like that all the time, so Wally wasn't worried.

He was about to open the door, when it was pulled open from the inside by his mom. She walked out of the house, a suitcase in each hand. It was then that Wally realized she'd hadn't been making meaningless threats. She really was leaving. He got out of the way of the suitcases. One of them was his.

"Mary, where do you think you're going?" Wally heard his dad shout. Rudolph stepped out of the house in time to see his wife throw the luggage in the trunk of her car.

Mary saw Wally. "Get in the car," she ordered, ignoring her husband. She had had enough of this. Mary was done with Rudolph and his pathetic inability to hold a steady job. She had gotten a hold of an old friend from high school who was in Metropolis. Her name was Lois Lane, and she had said Mary and Wallace could stay with her for while they got back on their feet.

Wally got in the car like he was told. He couldn't believe this was happening. It was so unreal, like something from a movie. What was even happening? Where was his mom planning on going? And why did he have to go? He wanted to stay at home. He didn't want her to leave, and he didn't want to leave. Things weren't really that bad, were they?

"I don't care if you leave, but you are not taking Wally," Rudolph shouted. He honestly didn't care if he never saw Mary again, but Wally was his son, his whole world. She wasn't going anywhere with him.

Wally didn't know what to do. He didn't want to be around his parents when they were fighting, so he got out of the other side of the car. He slipped away quietly and hid behind the shed that was on the side of the house, out of sight. His parents kept shouting and he heard what sounded like someone hitting the car. He looked out in time to see his dad jump back from the car as it roared to life and sped away. This would be the last time Wally saw his mom for a long time.

Rudolph went and sat down on the front steps, his head in his hands. He had tried to open the back door and get Wally out of the car, but Mary had gotten in and locked the doors. Rudolph had hit the metal over her window and screamed for her to stop, but she had just left. Mary had left with Wallace. What was he supposed to do? Call the cops? Would that be considered kidnapping? Where was she going?

Wally came out from behind the shed. As he got closer, Wally could tell his dad was crying. That scared him. His dad never cried, no matter what happened.

"Dad?" Wally asked in a whisper. He was within arm reach of the steps by now.

Rudolph's head shot up. Tears were on his cheeks, but his face lit up when his saw Wally. He pulled his son onto his lap and explained that things would be different from now on.

runninghome

It had been two weeks since Wally's mom had left. He missed her and it was hard. He tried not to think about it too much. The first few days he had worried when she didn't come home at five, but he had reminded himself that she wouldn't be back. Wally had ended up having to tell his teacher what had happened. She wouldn't stop asking what was wrong. She had looked very sorry and said things would be okay.

"I think I found work," Rudolph announced, when he got home that night. Wally had been home for a while, making what passed as hamburger helper. His cooking really needed practice.

"What is it?" Wally asked happily. If his dad got a job things would get better. Maybe his mom would come home. Wally told himself not to count on it. There was no sense in getting his hopes up.

"I'll tell you after supper. So how was school?" Rudolph asked as he sat down at the kitchen table. He was putting off telling Wally. It was bad enough, but then he had to go and tell his son what he was doing. How was he supposed to look his son in the face ever again? He would just have to get over it. There was nothing else to be done about it.

Wally talked about school while they ate. He ate quickly, excited to hear about his dad's day. He could tell something wasn't right, but he pushed the feeling to the back of his mind. Why wouldn't everything be fine?

"Leave the dishes for right now," Rudolph said, getting to his feet. He went over to the couch and sat down. Wally followed him and climbed up onto his lap. He had been clingier since Mary had left.

"So what are you going to be doing?" Wally asked, smiling up at his dad. He tried to smile even when he didn't feel like it, so his dad wouldn't see how sad he really was. He didn't have to try to smile now. They would be able to get things they needed. Wally didn't want to tell his dad, but he needed new shoes; the ones he had now were falling apart. Kids and teachers were starting to notice that his clothes were getting too small for him and were wearing out. Wally hated the pity in their eyes when they looked at him.

"Wallace, it's very important that you never tell anyone what I'm going to tell you. Okay?" Rudolph said seriously. He knew Wally could keep his mouth shut.

Wally nodded. Looked like that bad feeling he had had some foundation after all.

"I'm working with some people….what we're doing is against the law. Do you understand?" Rudolph asked. He couldn't believe he was telling this to his son, but then again he never thought Mary would leave, but look how that had turned out.

"Yes," Wally answered. He didn't know how to respond to this. This was coming from out of nowhere. What did his dad mean against the law? What was he doing? Part of Wally didn't want to know, so he didn't ask.

"We'll have money and everything will be okay again," Rudolph continued. "If anyone comes to the house asking for me just come get me as quick as you can. If I'm not home, don't answer the door. You got that?" He didn't trust the men he was working with and if he messed up they could come to the house, looking for him. He wasn't going to let his actions hurt Wally.

"Yes, Dad," Wally answered. He felt like crying. His dad was going to break the law. Were they really that desperate? He knew the answer to that was yes. He wished life could go back to how it was before his father lost his job, but he knew things would never be the same.

The reality of it all set in over the next few weeks. Wally learned about his dad's new friends. Their names were Max Cable, Mark Folds, and Frank Ruben. He didn't like them. They would come over to the house and be there all day, just sitting around watching TV. At night Wally's dad would go out and not come back till morning. On those nights Wally would sit up waiting for him to come back.

Wally told himself he did it so he could hug his dad, when he walked through the door, but the real reason was Wally thought his dad would leave him like his mom had. For some reason Wally felt that if he went to bed and fell asleep his dad wouldn't come home, but if he stayed up he would.

Wally's grades started falling. He fell asleep in class and on the playground. He had to make up for the sleepless nights at home somehow. His teachers just shrugged it off as him being upset that his mom was gone, and he said nothing to correct them. He never told anyone about what his dad had told him or anything really. He pulled away from all his friends. He'd found that it was easier to hide the truth the further he got from the people around him.

Wally figured out what was going on a few days after he and his dad had had their talk. He had been looking at the newspaper when his eyes landed on an article about a robbery at a gas station not too far from his house. Wally's dad had been out that night. The same thing happened again and again. Wally didn't have to be a genius to see who was committing the robberies. He'd stopped reading the paper after that.

Wally sighed as he walked home from the last day of school for the summer. When he got home Max, Mark, Frank, and his dad weren't sitting on the couch waiting for dark. Instead the three men weren't there and his dad was in the kitchen, cleaning.

"Your Aunt Iris is coming over to visit and she's bringing her new husband. I need you to clean the living room up," Rudolph said almost without looking up. He didn't really want to see his sister at the moment. She had a good job and the respect of the family. He was the black sheep. They had been close growing up, but he had purposefully cut ties with her and everyone else. She didn't seem to get the message and continued to call. She had even invited him to her wedding.

Wally quickly got to work. He'd been doing a lot of the house work since his mom left, so he knew what needed to be done before their guests arrived. He didn't remember Aunt Iris very well, just a face in the crowd at Thanksgiving and Easter. There was one time she had let him sit on her lap. He'd been five at the time and his parents had gone in the other room to scream at each other. Everyone had been able to hear them so it didn't matter whether they had stayed or not.

He wondered what her husband was like. He hoped he was nice. Of what little Wally remembered of his aunt she had always been kind to him and everyone else. She deserved someone nice and good like her. Wally had learned not to put too much hope in people, so he wasn't going to bet on his new uncle being anyone more than someone who his aunt had found convenient to marry.

runninghome

Barry glanced around at the neighborhood as he drove. He was starting to think Iris didn't know where her brother lived.

"Are we on the right road?" he asked Iris who was smiling at him. They had planned to get married for so long and they finally had. Their dreams were really coming true. They had had some rough times and come away closer because of it. Iris had nearly locked him up when she found that he was the Flash. She had calmed down after a bit and she understood why he had to do this.

"Yes," Iris answered. "This area didn't use to be this rough." There were no kids play outside of the homes, even though it was warm out and the whole place had a watched fearful aura about it.

"Is everything alright with you and your brother? He's not mad at you for something is he?" Barry asked. He had been an only child safe for an older step-brother who hadn't really been around when he was growing up, so he didn't really understand how sibling relationships were.

Iris sighed. "I don't know. He did sound funny on the phone and he hasn't called lately. I know he didn't come to wedding, but he said he had to work that day."

"What's his wife like?" Barry asked. He was trying to get an idea of the family he had married into. So far all of the Wests he had met had been very nice, all a little standoffish, but that was just because they didn't know him yet.

"Mary is pretty nice, but she has a temper just like Rudolph's. They can get into some loud arguments when they're both worked up. They've been married for about eleven years and had Wally ten years ago," Iris said happily. Wally was by far her favorite nephew, not that she let anyone know that. He was a sweet little boy while most of her other nephews and nieces were spoiled and could be really bratty when they didn't get what they wanted.

"I think you showed me a picture of him. Red hair, big green eyes, right?" Barry said thinking back to that picture. There was something sad about the little boy's eyes.

"That's him. He's so quiet and-. Oh there's their house," Iris said pointing to a house at the end of the block.

It was small and looked neglected. It had been painted white, but now the paint was so chipped away and dirty that Barry almost couldn't tell what color it had been. The lawn which no one had bothered to water was dead.

Nice place, Barry couldn't help thinking. He parked the car, and he and Iris got out. They walked up to the front door, and Iris rang the doorbell.

runninghome

Wally just finished straightening up the bathroom when he heard the doorbell ring. His dad was in the master bedroom shaving, so he went to answer the door. He found himself looking up at Aunt Iris and a man about her age with blond hair and blue eyes.

"Hi, Wally," his aunt said sweetly. She stepped into the house and gave him a hug.

"Hello, Aunt Iris," Wally said hugging his aunt back. She reminded him of his mom when she was in a good mood. They both had red hair and brown eyes. Iris could have been his mom's sister with how much they looked alike.

"This is your new uncle. His name is Barry," Aunt Iris said turning to the man.

"Hello," Wally said shyly.

"Hi, Kiddo," Uncle Barry said, smiling. He offered a big hand for Wally to shake, which he did. "Are you a Flash fan?" he asked looking at Wally's shirt. It was red and had a yellow lightning bolt on it.

Wally nodded. "He's the coolest superhero ever," he said seriously. Sometimes he wished Flash would catch his dad and the others, so they would stop stealing from people, but other times he was glad they didn't get caught.

"I have to agree," Barry said. Great, the kid already liked him.

"I'll get Dad," Wally said and went to let his dad know their guests were there. It was nice to have people over that were just normal family. It had been so long since anyone other than his dad's friends had come to the house.

Rudolph came out and the two of them went to the living room. He had had to explain to the others why they couldn't hang out at his place that day. They had been annoyed at the news. They didn't want to be at their homes all day, but they didn't want to anything to look suspicious so they had found somewhere else to go.

"It's been a long time," Rudolph said hugging his sister.

"Too long," Iris said clearly happy. She could feel that something wasn't right, but she was going to ignore it. She was happy, and no one was going to mess that up. "This is my husband," she said gesturing to Barry. Iris had hoped Rudolph would be more welcoming, but she could see that she was just going to have to put up with whatever kind of mood he was in today. He had liked doing that when they were little. Everything had depended on what he decided his mood was going to be that day.

"It's good to meet," Rudolph said, shaking Barry's hand. Okay, so maybe he was going to have a good attitude.

"Where's Mary?" Iris asked, listening for the sound of her sister-in-law's step, but she didn't hear anything. Iris noticed that Rudolph and Mary's wedding picture that had always hung on the back wall was gone. That wasn't a good sign.

Rudolph stiffened. "Wally, can you go up to your room for a minute?" He didn't like to talk about Mary with Wally around. It was as if they didn't talk about her then nothing had happened or changed. At least that was how Rudolph felt. He knew he had failed and talking about that with Wally around just made it worse.

Wally had sat down in a chair out of the way, but he got up now and left the room. He knew his dad didn't like to talk about his mom. He understood, he didn't like to think about how things had changed.

"Mary left me about a month ago," Rudolph said flatly. There, it was out.

There was a long moment of shocked silence.

"Rudolph, I'm so sorry. Why didn't you call me?" Iris said. She felt awful. She should have seen something was wrong when her brother had stopped calling.

"I don't know. I just couldn't," Rudolph said. What good would calling her do? Could Iris get him a job? Could she get Mary to come home? Could the new Mrs. Allen help him in any way? The answer to all of these questions was no. Iris couldn't do a thing so there was no reason for Rudolph to try to be part of her life. Maybe he could at least get some sympathy out of all this. "She tried to take Wally with her, but he hid until she was gone." He had them. The both felt sorry for him. Good. It a few months he would ask them for a 'loan' and then he would get himself and Wally out of Central City. The police were getting too close and they would be looking even harder after the hitch at the gas station last night. Besides splitting the money four ways didn't go very far.

"Wally, you can come down now," Rudolph said loudly.

Barry looked up to the top of the stairs, when the little boy appeared. He understood the sadness in Wally's eyes now. How could someone leave their child? Sure Mary had tried to take him with her, but she hadn't come back for him. Some people just couldn't put aside themselves to take care of what was their responsibility.

Wally came down and sat near his dad. He was very quiet, but Barry could tell he was listening closely to everything that was being said.

Iris was trying to think of something to talk about that would take everyone's minds off the fact that Mary wasn't there. She brought up the first thing that popped in her head.

"Have you heard about all those robberies lately?" Iris asked. "They've all been in this area, I think." She had been worrying about that. What if those people broke into her brother's house? She hoped the police or Flash would catch them soon. The neighborhood where she and Barry had moved to was one of the nicer areas in Central City and two of their neighbors were detectives as well as Barry's coworkers.

Wally felt like throwing up. Those were the robberies his father had committed. It was bad enough to know they were happening, but to hear people talking about them was a thousand times worse.

"Yeah. It's been in the paper almost every day. How many times do they have to rob someone before the cops catch them?" Rudolph said calmly. He hadn't even blinked when his sister brought up his crimes. He was honestly proud that he and the others had evaded the police and the Flash for so long, but he knew their luck would run out.

"Well, they've upped their game. Last night they shot a store clerk," Barry said darkly. He'd been there to look at the crime scene and to take the body away. The clerk hadn't had any weapons or way to defend himself. The next time these people stuck the Flash would stop them.

Rudolph sent Barry a look. "What is it you do?"

"CCPD: CSI," Barry answered. "That's how I met Iris. She was reporting on Mayor Conway's murder and I had just been transferred to that part of the city." Iris had just moved from Keystone City, Kansas, to Central City, Missouri. She hadn't had any family or friends in the area and she and Barry had become close over a short space of time.

Iris had said that Rudolph and Mary moved to Central after he had lost his job and a friend from high school had had a job for him in Central City.

Wally, who hadn't been looking well for the past few minutes, got up the nerve to ask a question. "What does CSI stand for?"

"Crime Scene Investigator," Barry answered. He was glad Wally had asked him a question. Iris had told him that her nephew was shy and didn't talk to anyone much, unless it was about science, and then he would talk for hours. "When someone commits a crime I look at the science part of it, like DNA, finger prints and ballistics. That way I can tell who did it and how."

"Oh," was Wally said. He would have liked to ask some more questions, but he was scared he might let something slip about what his dad had done. A little while later Iris and Barry left the old house.

"Dad?" Wally asked. His voice was shaking. He didn't want to ask this question, but he had to know.

"Yeah, buddy," Rudolph answered. He had gone to the kitchen to get something to drink, but he was back now.

"Did you shoot that man?" Wally asked. Maybe Max, Mark or Frank had done it.

Rudolph didn't look too happy at that question, but he answered it. "Yes, I did. He was going for his phone, and I couldn't let him call the cops." He was calm as he said this.

Now, Wally really did feel sick. He jumped to his feet and ran to the kitchen. Wally spent the next few minutes throwing up everything he had eaten that day into the sink. How could his dad kill someone? What if the police found out? Of course they would find out; they always found out.

"Wally," Rudolph said gently. He was standing in the doorway, looking at his son. "Are you okay?"

Wally shook his head. No, he was not okay. How could he be okay? How could anything ever be okay again? He sat down on the cracked tile floor and started to cry.

Rudolph went over to his son and sat down next to him on the floor. He rubbed circles on Wally's back until he stopped crying.

"Dad?" Wally asked. He was hard to understand around his shaky breaths.

"Yes, Wallace," Rudolph answered. How could he do this to Wally? He was getting out of Central City as soon as he could. Maybe they could go Keystone. Wally would like it there.

"You wore gloves, and the gun wasn't yours, right?" Wally asked. He was terrified that his dad would be arrested. Part of him knew his father should get in trouble, but Wally didn't want that to happen.

"Of course, buddy. I won't let your uncle catch me," Rudolph said, faking a smile. He silently added to himself. 'And I won't let anyone take you from me.'

runninghome

"Did that seem weird to you?" Iris asked as Barry started the car.

"A little," Barry answered carefully. Something was definitely off, but he didn't really want to upset Iris by telling her that.

"I can't believe Mary left. I know she and Rudolph always had problems, but it was never bad enough to break up an eleven year marriage," Iris said sadly.

"Did Wally seem okay to you?" Barry asked. He was worried about his nephew. It had to be hard to lose his mom like that. Top that off with the fact that he clearly needed new clothes and more food.

"I think he's just sad about his mom," Iris answered. That was the only explanation she could think of. "Plus he's probably scared with all the robberies around here."

"Maybe," Barry said thoughtfully.


	2. Chapter 2

Wally was dozing on the couch a few weeks later. It was around one in the morning and he didn't expect his dad to be home for another two or three hours. Suddenly the front door was thrown open and his dad ran in with Max, Mark and Frank right behind him.

"Dad, what's-," Wally started to ask.

"Go to your room and don't come down till I call you," Rudolph snapped.

Wally jumped to his feet and took off up the stairs. He didn't know what was going on, and he didn't really what to know. He sat down on his bed and tried to ignore the shouting that was going on downstairs. A few minutes later Wally heard the loud cry of police sirens. Seconds after that Rudolph opened the door and put himself between Wally and his accomplices.

"I won't let you use my son as a hostage," Rudolph said angrily. The sirens were getting louder.

"We're not really going to hurt him. We just need the police to think we will," Max said persuasively. He was the unappoint leader of the thieves. Whatever he said went most of the time. "He'll be fine. We tell the cops to back off, and they will. Then we'll drive to the airport, and Frank will fly us out of the state with your kid. Do you really want Wallace to spend the next eight years in the foster system?"

Rudolph almost flinched at the idea. He was silent for a moment before turning to Wally. "Wally, I can't let the cops take you away from me. It's going be scary, but everything will be okay," Rudolph said quickly. How had things come to this? He nodded his agreement to the other men.

Suddenly Frank's cell started ringing. He answered it and put it on speaker.

"Hello. This is Captain Bromell. I want the four of you to come out of there with your hands up. This doesn't have to end badly for anyone," a man's voice said calmly. It was odd to hear that level of calm in the situation.

"We've got a hostage and unless your men move back we will kill him. I don't think you want the death of a child on your hands," Max said seriously.

The Captain was silent for a brief moment. "Alright, can you tell me how he's doing?"

"He's fine," Max answered flippantly. "Here, kid, say hello to the Captain," he said holding the phone out to Wally."

"Hello," Wally said quietly. He was terrified even with his dad standing next to him.

"Hello, son. Are you okay?" Bromell asked.

Wally glanced up at his dad, who nodded. "Yes," he answered in a shaky voice.

Max pulled the phone away. "Happy, Captain?" He asked. There was a touch of sarcasm in his voice.

"My men will move back," the Captain said shortly.

Max hung up. "See, I told you it would work. After they're gone the Captain will call back, and we'll tell him to get us a plane that's ready to fly out of here."

runninghome

Iris heard a phone ringing. She blinked slowly, before looking at the clock. It was almost two; this better be important. The phone was Barry's, but the sound hadn't woken him up. He just rolled over and groaned.

"Hello?" she asked sleepily. Who in their right mind would be call this early in the morning? She hadn't looked to see who was calling. If it was one of Barry's Justice League buddies they would get an earful.

"Is this Iris Allen?" a voice asked. Whoever it was didn't sound happy.

"Yes," Iris answered and tried not to yawn in the person's ear.

"This is Captain Bromell with the CCPD. Your husband works for me. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but your brother has been charged with robbery and murder. Now he and three other men have barricaded themselves in his home. They've taken a hostage and we believe it is your nephew, Wallace West."

"What!?" Iris shouted. Barry's eyes popped open and he jumped so high he fell out of the bed. "We'll be there as soon as we can," she said and hung up.

"What's going on?" Barry asked. He got to his feet. He was sure he had thrown his back out when he hit the floor.

"Rudolph's the one who committed all those robberies and now he and some others have taken Wally hostage," Iris said breathlessly.

Barry was already pulling on his Flash costume. He knew something wasn't right about his brother-in-law, but he never would have guessed it was this.  
"You get to Rudolph's. Wally will be safe and sound by the time you get there," Barry said and zipped away. He had smiled at his wife, but he was panicking inside. He should have looked into Rudolph. He had known something was wrong and now Wally was in danger because he hadn't taken the time to see if anything was up with West's life.

He ran to the other side of the city in record time. He skidded to a stop next to Captain Bromell's car. He sometimes wondered how his boss and coworkers didn't realize that it was him behind the bright red mask. He was half sure they didn't want to know.

"Heard what was happening. Thought I could help," Flash said shortly.

Bromell looked a little surprised to see him. "Of course."

Before the Captain could say another word, Flash was gone. Barry didn't realize it at the time, but that race would change his life and the lives of many others, for the better.

runninghome

Wally stared blankly at a picture of his mom, dad and him. They were standing in front of their house, smiling. It was one of those few moments when they were all together and happy. Wally wished he could walk through the thin piece of glass and stay in that moment. They had just moved to Central City, his dad had had a job, his mom was happy and everything was perfect.

After Max had hung up, they had all gone downstairs, to the living room. Wally looked over at his dad. It was odd; the protective wall that he always felt when his father was there was gone now. The only thing in its place was fear. Could it have been last night that he and his dad had had supper? It seemed like a lifetime ago.

Suddenly there was the sound of breaking wood. The front door was flung across the room. It hit the wall. Max raised his gun to fire, but there was a streak of red and the gun was thrown out of the room. Max was on the floor, unconscious. Just like that Frank, Mark and Rudolph went down, too. Wally didn't dare move. What had happened?

The red blur stopped right in front of him. It was Flash. Wally was in awe. He never he would see Flash, but the speedster was there to save him.

"Hey, you okay, Kiddo?" Flash asked.

Some part of Wally's brain told him he knew that voice, but he couldn't think of who it was. He nodded. He was fine other than being scared.

"Why don't we go see your aunt? She's outside waiting for you," Flash said. He didn't have to worry about the four men. They would be out for a while. He probably hit them a little harder than was necessary, but Wally was his nephew and it wasn't a good idea to hurt his family. Iris had been in a bank once and Captain Cold had tried to rob it. The man had nearly frozen her along with a dozen others. The Supervillain had ended up in a full body cast. It was safe to say that he hadn't been causing any trouble for a while.

Barry took Wally by the hand and led him out of the house. A cheer went up from the officers and neighbors who had gathered in the street. Seven or eight cops went in to the house to get the criminals. Flash had to push his way through the crowd. Iris was just pulling up. She got out of her car. She was on the phone. Barry could just make out was she was saying.

"Yes, I'm there, but I can't do this story. My family is involved," Iris said. She saw Barry and Wally and quickly hung up. She ran to them and pulled Wally into her arms. It was always odd having to pretend she didn't know who the Flash was, but their safety depended on it.

Iris caught a glance of her brother being led away. How could he do this to Wally and himself? He was better than that. He had had so much going for him. What had put it in his head to become a robber? And then there was the murder charge. Was it really Rudolph who had done it? She hoped not. What had happened to the boy she had grown up with? Sure he had been bossy and mean sometimes, but that didn't make him this.

Wally didn't remember much after that. Everything was a blur and there was so much going on. People were all over the place and they were all talking loudly. Flash had disappeared in the crowd. His uncle was there suddenly, but Wally hadn't seen him in the car. Uncle Barry guided Aunt Iris and Wally to the car and quickly got them inside before any reporters showed up. He drove to the police station.

When they got there a woman showed them into a small room with a table and a few chairs in it. There was a camera facing one of the chairs and a microphone in front of that chair. The woman asked Wally to sit facing the camera. Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry stood by the door. Aunt Iris was biting her lip and Uncle Barry had his arms crossed.

"My name it Kimberly Fairchild. What's your name?" She asked kindly. Wally thought she must be a detective. He didn't really want to talk to her. More importantly he wasn't supposed to talk to the police, but his dad had been caught so he guessed whatever he said wouldn't change anything. Plus she seemed nice and his dad had broken the law.

"Wallace West, but everyone calls me Wally," he answered.

"Okay, Wally. You know it's wrong to lie, don't you?" Kimberly asked. She was very serious.

"Yes," Wally said. He looked down. "Am I in trouble because I didn't tell anyone that Dad killed someone?"

Wally saw Kimberly wince. "No, sweetie. I just need to know what you know about what your dad did. Did you ever hear anything? Or did he tell you anything?"

"He told me that he, Max, Frank, and Mark were breaking the law. I knew they were the ones robbing all those places. Dad told me not to tell anyone. We didn't have any money and Mom left. Dad tried to find a job, but he couldn't. Then the others stared coming over to the house. At night they would all go out. Dad always came back around four. He started telling me about the places they robbed. I didn't want to know, but I didn't tell him that," Wally said. It was so relieving to be able to tell someone about everything that he had had to deal with all by himself for so long.

"Did he say anything about killing anyone?" Kimberly asked. She was upset, but she was hiding it pretty well.

"The day I met Uncle Barry I asked Dad if he killed the store clerk and he said he did," Wally answered.

Barry and Iris shared a look. Had Rudolph told him before or after their visit? If it had been before that explained Wally had clearly been upset. If it had been after than he must have suspected that his father was involved.

"Did your dad seem sad about what he had done?" Kimberly asked. She had seen the surveillance tape. All of the robbers had been wearing masks, so it was impossible to tell what the robbers looked like. The only way they had tied West to this was part of a figure print on the bullet that had killed the clerk. There had been more than one match with how little of the print they had, but they were able to rule all of the others out.

"No," Wally said shortly. "He got upset when I cried, but he didn't seem like he cared." He was silent for a few moments. "Is there something wrong with my dad? People should be upset after they do something like that." He had wondered if his dad might be a little crazy for a long time, but he hadn't been able to do anything.

"I don't know, Wally," Kimberly said gently. She wished she wasn't the one interviewing the kid, but she was the lead investigator. That made it her responsibility, but the job got harder when kids were involved.

"Did he ever say he would hurt you if you told someone what he told you?" She was going to get everything she could on Rudolph West and the others. If West had threatened his son maybe they would be able to charge him with threatening behavior towards a minor.

Wally shook his head. "Dad wouldn't hurt me. He just said not to tell anyone."

Kimberly asked him a few more questions before she told him he could go sit at her desk while she talked to his aunt and uncle. Wally sat down. He was really tired. It was four in the morning and he hadn't slept all night. He was fast asleep before long.

Back in the interview room Barry and Iris sat down across from Detective Fairchild.

"How well did you know Rudolph West?" Kimberly asked shortly. Barry was a friend and a coworker. She was sure he didn't know about this, but she had to be sure.

"I met him once. The day after the murder. I can't believe how calm he was," Barry said. He was in the house of a killer and he hadn't seen anything that suggested Rudolph was the one responsible.

"You talked about the case with him?" Kimberly asked. Barry should know better than to do that. He had worked with the CCPD for five years, after all.

"Of course not. At least nothing that everyone didn't already know," Barry said. The news about the murder had aired hours before they had gotten to Rudolph's house. Barry hadn't said a word that could hurt the investigation.

"Did he give any indication that he was involved?" Kimberly asked. She was basically interrogating a close friend. It was never good when some who worked in law enforcement was questioned. It made staying objective hard.

"None. Iris and I both thought something was wrong, but we never guessed it was this," Barry explained.

The three of them talked awhile longer before a Mrs. Jasmine Daily showed up. She worked for Social Services and she was there for Wally.

"As Wallace's only family present I can grant you custody," Daily said shortly. "I understand his mother walked out of his life?"

Iris nodded. "Could we have a moment to talk?" This was all happening so fast. Yesterday evening she and Barry were going on with their lives and it seemed as if nothing could interrupted that. Everything had been perfect. She had gotten home from work around the same time Barry had. They had made supper together and had watched a movie before going to bed. Now it was four in the morning, her brother was a murder and they had to decide if they were going to become Wally's guardians.

"Of course," Daily answered. She and Kimberly left the room.

Iris turned to look at her husband. "What are we supposed to do? Can we afford to take him? I know he's my nephew and we wouldn't be in this situation if it wasn't for my family. I don't know anything about taking care of a kid. Do you? Where would we put him? What if Mary comes back? Do you think she will? Do you want to take him?" Iris started to ramble. She was exhausted and there was a million questions on her mind.

In spite of everything Barry couldn't help smiling. He was so glad he had married Iris. She was so sweet and he found it funny how her noise wrinkled up when she didn't know what to do about something.

"What are you smiling about?" Iris asked. She was a little frustrated with Barry. Whenever she got upset over something he would just smile at her like that. She didn't understand why.

"I just think you're cute," Barry answered. He already knew what he wanted to do. His thinking process was faster than anyone's. There was more that came from having super speed than just the ability to run really fast.

Iris's checks turned a little red. Barry always made her get twittered.

"I know what I want to do, but I don't know how you feel," Barry continued.

Iris knew what he meant. "Is that what you want to do or what you obligated to do?" she asked.

"Wally's family and he needs us. We can turn the workout room into a bedroom for him. He's ten years old, there's not much we have to do other than make sure he does his homework and make sure he behaves." Barry said.

Iris almost laughed. She was started to get a little hysterical. "Yeah, sure. Do you remember what you were like when you were ten?" She had heard some pretty interesting stories from Barry's mom.

Barry thought for a moment. When he was ten he ran around his hometown getting into trouble every chance he got. His mom and dad hadn't known what to do with him. He smiled at the memory of him coming home one evening with a very angry raccoon in his arms, asking his parents if he could keep it.

"Okay, I see your point, but we can do it. I don't feel obligated and we were planning on having kids someday. This will be good for us and Wally," Barry said. He knew Iris wanted to take her nephew home, but it would be a big decision that they couldn't take lightly. It would change their lives and it was a huge responsibility to take in a child.

"I want to take Wally, but are you sure? I don't want you to resent me or Wally for this," Iris said finally.

"Really this is what I want to do," Barry said. They stepped out of the room to find Daily waiting for them.

"We'd like to become Wally's guardians," Iris said happily. She hadn't planned to be a parent for a few years yet, but life tends to throw thing at one whether they're ready for it or not.

"I'm glad to hear it. Now there's just some paperwork you have to fill out," Daily said.

Wally woke up slowly. Aunt Iris was kneeling in front of him. What was she doing there? He remembered what had happened. He wanted to cry, but he pushed that aside. He was not a crybaby, he was ten after all.

"Hi, honey," his aunt said gently. "Your uncle and I would like to take you home. How does that sound?"

Home? He didn't think he'd be allowed to go home. Wait, Aunt Iris must mean her home. That made more sense. Wally just nodded. He just wanted to sleep. Then he wouldn't have to think or get asked questions. What was going to happen? Wally knew his dad was in a lot of trouble, but he didn't know much about laws and things like, other than killers went to prison. Wally wondered if he would get to see him again. He wanted to see his dad. He didn't really want to go to Aunt Iris's and Uncle Barry's house. He wanted to go home, but that wasn't going to happen any time soon, or ever as far as he could tell.

"Come on, Buddy," Uncle Barry said and picked him up.

Wally was too tired to walk himself. By the time they got to the car he was back asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Wally had been living with his aunt and uncle for a week. He wasn't allowed to go to the jail to see his dad, which he blamed Iris and Barry for. He tried not to let them see it, but every once in a while something would slip, and they would know.

Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry redecorated the workout room for him. It was much nicer than his old bedroom. He had gotten to pick the color of the walls and everything else about the room. He knew his aunt and uncle were trying to make him feel at home, but it wasn't like he was just going to forget his parents and be happy all the time. He was trying not to be angry with everyone. Sometimes Wally didn't even know what he was upset about, but it was getting easier to get through a day without any problems.

He loved them, but everything was so different that adjusting was hard. He would become panicked if he couldn't find them or if one of them didn't get home from work on time. On the days when both of them had to go to work they would either take him to work at the crime lab or the news station, or they would call a babysitter.

"I've stayed home by myself before," Wally said as Aunt Iris got ready for work. He was going with her. He liked going to news stories with her and sitting in the back of the of the Central City Channel 7 van was fun. But he wanted to stay home that day. His uncle's lab at the precinct was really cool. He like to hang out there, but sometimes he wasn't allowed to be there, and this was one of those times. "Dad left me at home all the time." Wally saw his aunt flinch. He didn't know if it was because he mentioned his dad or because he had said something about how he had lived. It bothered both of them that he had been surrounded by thieves and killers.

"I know, Wally, but I don't like you to be here all by yourself," Iris answered. She didn't want anything about how she and Barry raised Wally to even be similar to Rudolph's parenting. Ten year olds shouldn't be left at home alone for hours at a time in her opinion. Fifteen to twenty minutes was the longest she and Barry had decided was okay.

Part of Wally enjoyed constantly being around someone. He was almost never alone. He had someone to talk to and he found himself talking to his aunt and uncle more than he had to his mom or dad. There was something about them that make him want to open up to them.

"Aunt Iris?" Wally asked suddenly.

"Yes," Iris answered. She was putting on a necklace and checking her hair one more time before they left the house.

"Are you mad at my dad?" Wally asked. He was angrier with his father more than anyone else, and yet he was the only person Wally wanted to see. His dad had broken, not only his family, but the family of the man who had been killed.

Iris paused. She tried not to think about her brother, and she never let herself think about what he had done. It was too horrible. "Sometimes. Are you mad at him?"

Wally nodded. "I love him, and I want to see him, but I keep thinking it can be how it used to before Mom left. I don't know why I would want that. Mom and Dad always fought, and they didn't like to be around each other." They were in the car by then and pulling out of the driveway.

"I can't say that I understand how you feel, Wally, but that's normal to not like change," Iris said. She really wished she knew if she was saying the right thing. It was a little scary sometimes how Wally talked. He sounded like an adult which wasn't fair to him. He didn't deserve to have that kind of childhood. Hopefully she and Barry could get him to see that he didn't have to grow up yet. Rudolph may not have seen it, but his actions were hurting his son badly.

The day passed slowly for Wally. He spent most of his time in the studio with Jim and Cassie. They worked the cameras and the other equipment. He was out of the way, and Jim and Cassie didn't mind having him around. They showed how the cameras and lighting worked.

That evening when Iris and Wally got home they found Barry there. He normally got home a little after Iris did. He had supper started and awhile later the three of them sat down to eat.

"How was work?" Iris asked.

"Open case. Can't talk about it," Barry said shortly. "You?"

Iris knew when Barry said open case it either meant he couldn't talk about it or wouldn't talk about it. She wished he didn't work in law enforcement, but he was doing what he was good at and, he was helping people.

"It was good, but Judy is trying to steal my segment on Monday. I'm covering Owen Mercer's trial," Iris said. Mercer aka Captain Boomerang was on trial for robbing a few banks before Flash took him down. Captain Boomerang was the least creative supervillain name Iris had ever heard of. How did Mercer come up with that anyway? Sure he threw a boomerang around, but she was sure he could come up with something better than 'Captain Boomerang.'

"Why does she want your segment?" Barry asked. Judy was Iris's rival at the studio. She was always trying to cause problems.

"Because my story is longer and will be getting more attention than hers," Iris said shortly.

"And how was your day?" Barry asked Wally. He knew his nephew was having trouble getting settled. Things were so different from how they used to be.

"Okay. I hung out with Jim and Cassie most of the time," Wally said. This was one of his favorite things about living with his aunt and uncle. They would sit and talk at supper. It wasn't so much as them talking as it was just that the three of them were all together like a family. Everything was calm and normal. There was nothing to be scared of and Wally felt safe and loved.

"Have you ever seen Flash, Uncle Barry?" Wally asked. He wanted to know everything about the hero, ever since that night the scarlet speedster had saved him.

"I think just about everyone in Central has seen him at some point," Barry answered. He didn't like the idea of lying to Wally. The kid had had enough of people not thinking about how things affected him, and Barry wasn't going to continue that cycle.

Wally wanted this to be how his parents were, loving and kind, not just to him, but to each other. But that couldn't happen now. Besides his aunt and uncle wouldn't leave like his mom had, and there was no way either of them were in trouble like his dad had been. He told himself to stop thinking about his parents. It was too painful sometimes. Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris were his family and the only family he needed.

That night Wally woke up suddenly. He could hear the sound of the front door being opened and closed again. He got up and silently crept through the house, looking for anything that was amiss. The only thing he found wrong was his uncle wasn't anywhere to be found. Aunt Iris was asleep in the master bedroom, but Uncle Barry was was so important that Uncle Barry had to go out in the middle of the night?

Wally went back to bed, but stayed awake listening. His mind was flooded with questions, but he didn't have answers to any of them. Hours later he heard the door being opened again. He recognized his uncle's step on the stairs. He quickly rolled over and pretended to be asleep.

Barry walked up the stairs. It had been a long night. Four robberies, one home break in, five car jackings and no end to cats in trees. Why were superheroes expected to save cats stuck in trees anyway? They got themselves up there, and if they were just left alone for a little while they would come down on their own.

He opened Wally's bedroom to check on his nephew before going to bed. He was worried about Wally. Sometimes things were fine, and he acted like a normal ten year old. Everything would be great, and they were just like a happy, normal family. Then something would happen to start things all over again. It was a movie that dealt with the kind of thing Wally had lived. There were a lot of things that he and Iris wouldn't let him watch that most kids could, and there was no way they let him watch the news. Some report about his father's upcoming murder trial was bound to be on the moment he walked into the room.

What was really bad was when someone recognized Wally from the news, but that didn't happen very often, just often enough for Wally to tell Barry that he wanted to wear a mask so no one would know that he was Rudolph West's son. It hurt to see Wally trying to be okay when he was clearly struggling with what his father had done. Who wouldn't have a hard time dealing with that kind of situation? It was something no one should have to figure out how to handle, especially not a child.

Whenever they went somewhere together people thought Wally was his and Iris's son. At first Barry had felt too young to be a father, but he didn't feel that way anymore. He kind of liked people thinking Wally was their son. He and Iris had been a little worried that it would upset Wally, but Barry had talked with him about it and it turned out that Wally was proud to be thought of as their kid.

Wally looked peaceful, so Barry started to close the door, but stopped when he heard Iris's step.

"Are you okay?" Iris asked softly. She came and stood by her husband. She worried every time he put on a mask. Having super speed didn't make him invincible.

"A few bumps and bruises," Barry whispered. He put an arm around Iris's shoulder. How many women would put up with this kind of life? Very few and none of them could be as pretty or as sweet as Iris in Barry's opinion. "How do you think Wally's doing?"

"I think he's starting to settle in, but he won't hardly ever ask for anything," Iris answered. When she was that age every time her mom or dad took her to the store it was: 'I want that' or 'Can I have that?' Not Wally, he only asked for something if she suggested it first. "I wonder if he likes living with us. What do you think?"

"I think he does," Barry answered. The two of them went back to bed.

Wally didn't sleep the rest of the night. What had caused his uncle's 'few bumps and bruises' as he had put it? Was Uncle Barry doing something like what his dad had done? Wally could think of no reason for Uncle Barry to go out in the middle of the night that didn't involve criminal activity. He couldn't stand the idea of losing his new family, just when everything was starting to be okay. This left him with the question of what should he do? Go to the police before his uncle was responsible for getting someone killed? Or keep his mouth shut? He would watch and see what was going on before he made a decision.

runninghome

A few days later Barry opened the front door and silently shut it. The meeting with the Justice League had gone well. Oliver wanted to bring Roy over to meet Wally. They were only a few years apart in age. Wally was still trying to make friends in their neighborhood.

"Hi, Uncle Barry," a sleepy voice said from the couch.

Barry jumped. He hadn't noticed Wally sitting on the couch, looking at him with half closed eyes. What was he doing up at three in the morning?

"What are you doing up?" Barry asked sitting down next to his nephew.

"Waiting for you to come home. I used to wait up for Dad, too," Wally said and yawned.

Barry picked Wally up and started up the stairs. He should have been more careful. The correlation between his and Rudolph's sneaking around wouldn't be lost on Wally.

"Did you hurt anyone?" Wally asked as Barry gently put his nephew to bed. He was almost asleep.

"No. I would never hurt anyone," Barry answered. He couldn't believe he was having a conversation like this with Wally.

"Kay," was all Wally said as he drifted off to sleep.

"Good night, Wally," Barry said and went to his room. The next morning he told Iris about the late night watches Wally had been holding. They were in the kitchen getting breakfast and Wally wasn't up yet. It was Saturday, so they were all going to the Central City Zoo. They didn't have a bunch of time in the week to do fun things like that with Wally so Iris and Barry wanted to make up for it on the weekends.

"You should tell him," Iris said shortly.

"You don't think he would tell anyone do you?" Barry asked. He trusted the League, Iris, his parents, Jay Garrick, the first Flash and Jay's wife, Joan, with his secret, but it was a bad idea for his identity to get out for obvious reasons.

"His father was committing crimes on a nightly basis, and he never even hinted at it to anyone. How much more do you think he'd protect you, the person who saved him? He looks up to you, Barry, I don't want him to lose that respect because he thinks you're doing what Rudolph did," Iris said. She wasn't going to have anything about Barry reminding Wally of his father.

She had been tempted to take down all the pictures she had of her brother, but she had left a few of them up. That was before he had become what he was. She wasn't going to forget the good times they had had, even if that young man, who wouldn't hurt anyone and who would never dreamed of taking a thing that didn't belong to him, was a distant memory.

"Wally knows how to keep people from seeing what he doesn't what them to see. I doubt he'd want people to see that you're Flash," Iris said gently.

"Alright," Barry said. "I'll tell him sometime this week." He didn't want to go into all that today. This was their family day, and he didn't want anything to interrupt that.

Barry didn't get a chance to tell Wally that week. There was a double homicide, and he got home late every night. It turned out that he didn't have to tell Wally who the Flash was. He found out for himself.

Barry had left for work that morning. Iris only had to go in for a little while and Wally had talked her into letting his stay at home. She didn't much like it, but Wally had said he'd be fine and if he needed her, he would call.

"I'll be back soon. Keep the doors locked and don't eat anything while I'm gone. I don't want you to choke," Iris said before kissing Wally on the forehead and walking out the door.

After his aunt left, Wally went around the house, looking for something to do. He looked into his uncle's office. He wasn't supposed to be in there unless Uncle Barry was there, but his curiosity got the better of him.  
Wally went in and sat down at his uncle's desk. He opened a few of the drawers but only found old case files. He opened the bottom drawer and saw a small safe in it. It had a number pad on the top. Wally sat for a moment thinking, he then put in his aunt's and uncle's wedding date. The safe opened. Inside was a small leather bound notebook. Wally took it out and looked through the odd looking book. It didn't take long for him to see that his uncle was the Flash.

That's why Uncle Barry had been going out. He was saving people and stopping criminals. Wally felt momentary relief before a cloud settled over his thoughts. Why hadn't his uncle told him? Probably because his dad was a killer and that made him untrustworthy. He brightened at the memory of Flash saving him. That was his uncle. Wally had always thought Uncle Barry was cool, but really he was awesome. The two people Wally looked up to were one and the same.

He turned to the last page in the book and found a list of chemicals that his uncle had written down. With these chemicals and the proper amount of electricity one could gain super speed. He got a piece of paper and a pencil and quickly wrote each one down carefully. Wally put the notebook away and left the room.

This had made his uncle the Flash, so it could do the same for him. If someone had been there to stop his father that night, no one would have been killed. He would have gone to jail, of course, but he wouldn't have destroyed more lives along the way. Wally knew that his uncle couldn't be everywhere at once even if he was Flash. The fastest man alive needed back up, and Wally was going to be that back up.

He was going to have to figure out how to get his hands on all those chemicals and then there was the little problem of him having to get shocked with approximately five billion joules of electricity. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea, but if Uncle Barry had survived it then so could he.


	4. Chapter 4

Over the next two weeks Wally systematically stole the chemicals he needed from his uncle's lab. He felt bad, to be more exact he felt like a low life who was no better than his father. But if he succeeded he would be able to save lives. No one would notice they were gone for a while and by then Wally would have already used them.

Wally was on the computer in his aunt's office, when Uncle Barry walked into the room.

"Hey, bubby. What are you looking at?" Barry asked. He was planning on talking to Wally about Flash that night.

"The weather. We're going to have a thunder storm," Wally answered. He had been waiting for a storm like this. Clouds had been gathering all day.

Barry's phone went off. It was a text from Iris. He read it. "Iris's car won't start. I need to go pick her up. Will you be okay by yourself?" He asked. He know Wally didn't like thunder storms very much. They made him nervous.

"I'll be fine," Wally answered. This was working out perfectly. If Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris saw him climbing up a tree in the middle of thunder storm they would stop him. Then they would find out what he'd been planning to do.

Wally watched at the window until his uncle's car was out of sight. He was outside in a second, the chemicals in a box under one arm. The wind had picked up and the clouds were getting darker. Lightening cracked across the sky and seconds later the thunder boomed. Rain started pouring down. It didn't take long for Wally to be completely soaked.

There was a large tree in the front yard, it was the tallest in the neighborhood. Wally had climbed almost to the top before. It was harder to do with a box in one arm and rain pelting him, but he finally managed to find a place to sit near the top. All there was left to do was wait. He didn't think he'd have to wait long. For a moment he thought about climb down and forgetting about this clearly bad idea, but then Wally remembered the man that had been killed because of his dad. He wasn't going down for anything.

runninghome

Barry stopped in front of the studio. Iris was standing on the curve in the rain. She opened the door and got in.

"Thanks," she said smiling. Iris didn't mind getting wet. If it had been in the morning she would have been mad but as it was, she didn't really care. All she wanted to do was go home and relax.

"Of course, my fair lady," Barry said dramatically. He had learned it was best to smile when he could and try to avoid fights. He never knew when he would go out as Flash and never come back. There was no way he was going to leave Iris and be in the middle of a fight at the time. They had made it a rule that Barry wouldn't go out as Flash while they were having an argument until it was finished. They didn't fight very often so this rule wasn't used much.

They talked as Barry drove about his day, about her day and what they were going to do that weekend. A trip to the ice rink would be fun or maybe they would walk down to the park, spend the day there and have a picnic.

"Has Wally seemed a little off to you lately?" Barry asked. He had noticed something was wrong, but he couldn't put his figure on what the problem was.

"A little," Iris said. "It must be Rudolph's trial, and he'll be starting a new school soon. I'm sure he's nervous about it." She was silent for a few seconds. "Do you think we should try to get Wally a visit with him?" That had been bothering her for a while, but she didn't know if it was a good idea. Wally had seemed to be doing better, until recently of course, and she didn't want to make things worse by having Wally visit Rudolph.

"I don't know. You and I could go see him first before we do something like that. I know Wally misses him, but I don't really want him around Rudolph," Barry answered. He wondered what other people did in this kind of situation. It wasn't an easy situation to deal with.

Lightening lit up the sky. It had been thundering, but they hadn't been able to see the lightening until then.

"I hope Wally's okay," Iris said biting her lip.

"He said he'd be fine," Barry answered. He would have brought Wally along if he had wanted to come. "Do you like having him with us?" He asked unexpectedly.

Iris was quiet before answering. She had to think over the past month or so. "I didn't know what it was like to have this kind of responsibility. To have someone depend on you for everything is a little scary sometimes. I didn't know if we were going to be what he needed, or if we were going to be able to handle being parents, but I love it. What about you?" When they had first brought Wally home, she had wanted so much for Barry to love her nephew. She couldn't ask Barry to let Wally stay if he didn't want him there. She wasn't going to let anything come between her and Barry. There were other people in the family who would be willing to take Wally, but she didn't want them to.

"I like being a dad," Barry said. He looked away from the road for a moment to smile at his wife. His dad had been there for him his whole life, and he wanted Wally to have that same kind of attention and love.

The lightning flashed again and the thunder roared. Suddenly, something tightened in him. It reminded him of the first time he'd been shot, but without the pain. There was just that horrible fear. Barry's foot turned to lead on the gas pedal.

"Barry!" Iris cried in surprise. She had the edges of her seat in a death grip. "Barry, slow down!"

Barry didn't slow down. Something was wrong, and he had to get to Wally. He turned down their street. The tree in their front yard was on fire. They could both see a small body not too far from the tree. Barry hit the brakes hard and jumped out of the car. Iris was right behind him.

Barry ran to his nephew at an inhuman speed. "Call for help!" he ordered. There was smoke rising from Wally's body and Barry could smell the sickening aroma of burnt skin. He saw the chemical burns on Wally's arms and hands. What had he been doing? Barry checked for a heartbeat and a pulse. There was no sign of either. He started preforming CPR. He heard Iris coming up on his right. She was on the phone.

"My husband is trying that," she said into the phone. Her voice was tight and fearful. "Please hurry."

It didn't take long for the loud cry of sirens to be heard. Neighbors were coming out of their houses to see what was going on.

Suddenly E. were pushing Barry out of the way. Two of them loaded Wally into the ambulance, while a third continued CPR on the ten year old. They sped away to the hospital. Barry hadn't even noticed the fire truck that had shown up. The firefighters put out the fire in the tree and made sure it didn't spread to the nearby houses. The rain did a great deal to help.

Barry and Iris got back in the car and followed the ambulance to the hospital. They sat in the waiting room for hours waiting to hear if Wally was alive or not.

runninghome

Barry pulled up in front of the jail. Iris was still at the hospital. Wally was alive, but he was in serious condition. It had been almost twelve hours since he had been struck by the lightening. The doctor said he had high hopes for their nephew. That was the only reason Barry had left, plus someone had to tell Rudolph that his son had nearly died. A simple phone call wouldn't do. If Barry was in his brother-in-law's situation he'd want someone to come tell him.

He went and sat down at one of the booths. There was a thick piece of glass in front of him. He picked up the phone just as Rudolph sat down. He picked up the phone on his side of the glass.

"Hello, Barry. What are you doing here?" Rudolph asked. He hadn't changed at all in the month he'd been in jail, awaiting his trail.

"I wanted to be the one to tell you. Wally was struck by lightning yesterday afternoon," Barry said shortly. Saying it out loud made it more real somehow.

Rudolph's jaw dropped. "What?" he almost shouted. The guard on Rudolph's side of the glass sent Barry a look, asking if he needed him to step in. Barry gave a slight shake of his head. "Is he alive?"

"Barely," Barry answered.

"What does the doctor say?" Rudolph asked. He had to get out of there and see his son.

"He says he thinks Wally will be okay," Barry said. He wanted to believe it too, but he was almost afraid to.

"What was he doing outside in a storm? Wally hates storms," Rudolph asked. Wally knew better than to be outside in a thunder storm. He knew they were dangerous. If there was anyone he trusted with Wally it was his sister, but she had let him down.

"I don't know. Iris's car wouldn't start, so I went to pick her up from work. I left Wally at the house. When we got back he was in the front yard. He wasn't breathing," Barry continued. He wanted Rudolph to be worried. This was his fault after all, wasn't it? If Rudolph hadn't broken the law and killed someone, he'd be at home with Wally, who wouldn't have been hurt.

"Thank you for coming and telling me," Rudolph said. He was silent for a long time. Wally would be okay; he had to be okay. "How has Wally been?" He had wanted to see him, but either by Barry and Iris or someone else's doing he hadn't been allowed to. He didn't know if Wally would come if he had the choice.

"Other than a few things, he's been fine," Barry answered. He was baiting Rudolph into asking what kind of things. He wanted the man to feel guilty for everything he'd put Wally through. Barry wasn't thinking right. He hadn't slept in twenty-four hours, and he'd spent twelve of those hours sitting in a hospital waiting room, wondering if his nephew was going to make it or not.

"What kind of things?" Rudolph said. He hadn't heard about Wally until now, other than he was living with Iris and Barry.

"Well, for starters, I came home late one night to find him on the couch half asleep. While I was putting him to bed he asked me if I had hurt anyone. Would you like me to continue?" Barry asked. This wasn't like him. He didn't do this to people, but Rudolph had it coming.

Rudolph's face had gone pale. He wasn't looking too good.

"He misses you, but he's mad at you, so he doesn't know how to feel. Wally will get nightmares about that night you and the others took him hostage. He usually wakes up crying and calling for you to protect him. He doesn't like to go anywhere, because he's scared someone will recognize him and know what his father did. His face was on every news station when you were arrested after all. He saw some guy who reminded him of Max while we were at the store. I have never seen any kid look that terrified. His hands were still shaking by the time we left. So he's doing great," Barry said. He got up from the booth and left Rudolph staring after him.

Barry sat in his car for a long time not doing anything. He couldn't believe he had purposely beat Iris's brother up like that. Family was family, and you don't go after family like that. He had no problem beating up Rudolph or any other criminal, but when someone was on the other side of a piece of glass and couldn't do a thing to for themselves, well then there's no reason to tear them down further. Rudolph was paying for what he hadn't done and would be paying for it for years to come. Barry had been taking out his anger and frustration on the man.

He started the car and went back to the hospital. Barry found Iris right where she had been when he left, by Wally's bed.

"How did it go?" Iris asked. She had gotten a cup of coffee and there was one for Barry.

"Not good," Barry said and sat down. He had called into work to tell them he wouldn't be in that day. He hadn't had to tell them why. Everyone he worked with had heard about it from the E. and the firefighters. "I told him what happened. He was worried and understandably so. He asked how Wally had been doing living with us, and I…well, I got mad. He acted like Wally should be perfectly fine after everything he put him through. I told him about everything Wally had been dealing with," Barry said. Sure, Rudolph should know that Wally had been having a hard time and it was his fault, but it wasn't the time to tell him. Wally was in the hospital with life threatening injuries.

Iris was silent for a moment. "Did he feel bad?" she asked.

"I left before he could say anything, but yeah, he felt bad," Barry said. Rudolph's face had said more than any words could.

"Good," was all Iris said. She wanted to know that Rudolph felt something. She couldn't stop thinking about that day she and Barry had gone to visit. He had been so calm and unconcerned. It wasn't normal, and it wasn't right. She had thought for a little while that he might be a sociopath or something like that.

They didn't talk much. They both knew what the other was thinking. What was Wally doing outside? Barry had smelled the chemicals, which left him with a very bad idea as to what Wally had been doing. He had to be wrong though. There was no way his nephew knew he was the Flash or that he knew how to recreate the accident that had made Barry what he was. It just wasn't possible.


	5. Chapter 5

Wally hurt all over. That was the first thing he became aware of; the second was that there was something over his face. There was a loud beeping to his right, and it kept getting faster. He opened his eyes and found that he was in a hospital recovery room. The thing over his face was an oxygen mask and the beeping was coming from a heart monitor.

The last thing he remembered he had been in the tree, listening to the rain and counting the seconds between the lightening and the thunder. Then everything went black. Had it worked? Had he gotten the same power as his uncle?

A nurse walked into the room. "Oh, hello," she said kindly. "I'm glad to see that you're awake." She came over to the bed and checked his vitals and the IV that was in his left arm. "Your aunt and uncle have been here almost the whole time you were unconscious."

"What happened?" Wally asked around the mask. He would have liked to take it off, but he didn't think the nurse, whose name tag said, 'Beth', would let him.

"You were in a tree and lightening hit it. You've been out for about three days," Beth explained. "I'll go tell your aunt and uncle you're awake. They went down to the food court to get something to eat." She left the room.

A few minutes later Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry walked quickly into the room. They looked tired and worried, but their faces lit up with relief when they saw him.

The next few days were a pattern of doctors, nurses, being told to stay in bed and visits from Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry. Wally had looked in the bathroom mirror the third day he was in the hospital. He felt sick when he saw the burnt skin on his back. He hadn't thought about the scarring the lightning would cause when it hit him. He was lucky it hadn't burned his face.

Wally got a hold of his aunt's phone later and looked up 'lightning strike scars'. That didn't help him feel any better. Most of those people had their skin blown off. The doctor told him he would have 'Lichtenberg figures', which was a type of scarring left by lightning. They just had to make sure the burns didn't get infected, and he would be fine. Wally didn't like to look at his burns. They were just a reminder of how stupid he'd been. Maybe someday he wouldn't mind the scars he would carry, but at the moment he hated them.

When no one was around Wally would try to run to see if his little experiment had worked. At first he thought it hadn't worked, but then to his joy he found that it had. He could run around the room seven times before the second hand on the clock could move once.

Wally didn't dare tell his aunt and uncle, not just yet anyhow. He was putting it off until he was home, which was today. He was glad he was getting out of the hospital; he had been terrified the whole time he was there that someone would realize he wasn't normal, but fortunately no one had.

They left the hospital that afternoon. One of the nurses had wheeled Wally out in a wheelchair. He didn't understand why. He could walk just fine, and he had told the nurse that. The drive home was pretty quiet. Wally could tell his uncle was going to ask him something. He was probably trying to think of the best way to ask.

"Wally, why were you in that tree when there was a storm?" It was Aunt Iris who finally asked the question.

Wally looked at his shoes and mumbled something that neither Iris nor Barry could understand.

"What was that?" Barry said curiously. The question had been nagging at him the whole time Wally was in the hospital, but he and Iris had decided not to talk to Wally about it until he was somewhat better, which he was now, so…..

"I was trying one of your experiments," Wally said shortly. He pushed himself down in his seat. He had not been looking forward to this.

Barry got very quiet. "Which one?" His voice was dead serious. He had told himself that it wasn't possible that Wally had found out, but he had known in the back of his mind that Wally knew.

"The one that made you Flash," Wally answered in a whisper.

Barry jerked the wheel and the car slid through two lanes of traffic. He parked on the side of the road and turned to look at his nephew. "Did you experiment on yourself?" He shouted.

Wally nodded, eyes fixed on the floor. He was trying not to cry, but he was quickly losing that fight. Uncle Barry had never yelled at him before, even when he had broken a few of his test tubes at the lab.

"Wallace Rudolph West, look at me!" Barry ordered. The dreaded full name was used. Wally must have found his notebook. He couldn't believe he'd been so stupid as to leave a notebook of how he had gotten his powers in his own home. Batman would have something to say about his lack of sense when it came to security precautions. He was burning that thing the second they got home.

Wally looked up and met his uncle's eyes. He could think of a million places he'd rather be than in that car at that moment.

"You never experiment on yourself. You never look through my papers and you never do anything like that again," Barry said. His voice had been calmer at first, but as he spoke it had steadily gotten louder.

Iris sat there silently, listening to her husband. How could Wally do this to himself? He had nearly been killed. Now Barry and Wally could both run at the speed of light, which led to a very unpleasant idea of Wally running around Central City, wearing a mask, fighting crime, saving people, and putting himself in danger.

Wally didn't say anything. He just nodded. Wally had known Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris would be mad, but he wasn't quite prepared for how mad. His uncle, who had never raised his voice was shouting at him. His aunt, who talked when she was upset, was sitting there staring at him with this quiet horror written on her face.

"Do you realize you could have been killed?" Barry asked. "When Iris and I got there your heart wasn't beating. Another few seconds, and you would have had brain damage or be dead." He hadn't let himself think about that while they were in the hospital, waiting for Wally to wake up. If he hadn't sped home as fast as he dared, Wally wouldn't be sitting there.

"Yes," Wally sniffed.

"You don't play with something like that," Barry continued. He honestly didn't know what to say. Wally had never done anything like this before. He was always well behaved, and then this had happened. This meant Barry and Iris were going to have to step up and do something to insure there were no repeats of this kind of situation. Barry took a deep breath. He needed to calm down and think. It wouldn't do any good to sit there on the side of the road and chew Wally's head off.

"Have there been any side effects?" he asked. Barry was almost scared to know the answer.

Wally nodded. If he spoke he was sure he would start crying.

"Are you fast? Wally look at me," Barry said shortly.

"Yes," Wally whispered. He didn't bother to try to stop his tears. Everything seemed to be hitting him at once. What had he been thinking? He could have died over something as stupid as that just so he could get powers. He was going to have jagged scars all down his back for the rest of his life, but it had worked so he might as well use the powers he'd gotten.

Barry sighed and ran a hand through his hair. There went any opportunity for Wally to have a normal life. It just went out the window, along with any chance of him not putting himself in danger again. Wally had done this for a reason, and it sure wasn't so he could get anywhere he wanted in the blink of an eye.

Barry pulled an energy bar out of his pocket and handed in to Wally. "Eat this. Your metabolism is a lot faster now, so you'll have to start eating more or you'll pass out. You're grounded for the next three weeks."

He pulled back into traffic. He couldn't talk about this anymore, and he didn't want to think about it either. Iris clearly felt the same way. He was a little surprised she hadn't said anything. She usually would have backed him up when Wally did something he wasn't supposed to. Not that he had ever climbed up a tree in a thunder storm with chemicals planning to use himself as a human lab rat, but still the rule stood. They faced everything together.

The rest of the ride home was spent in a very uncomfortable silence. Silence excepting Wally's crying that is. He was obviously trying to stop, but he wasn't doing a very good job of it. He sounded as if he was just making himself hysterical, which ended in hiccups by the time they got home.

They walked in the front door. Barry shut the door and stood there for a moment. Only a week ago everything had been perfect. They had just gotten home from the pool. Wally didn't swim very well, and Iris and Barry had talked about signing him up for swimming lessons next summer or finding an indoor pool to take him to over the winter. Had that only been seven short days ago.  
"Wally, go to your room," Iris ordered gently. She went to the kitchen and started dinner.

Wally was glad for a reason to leave. He quickly went upstairs and shut the door.

Barry followed Iris to the kitchen and sat down on a stool at the island. Neither one of them said anything for a few minutes.  
"Are we going to talk about this?" Iris said, not looking at her husband.

Barry took another deep breath. Sometimes there were days that just needed to be over with, and this was one of them. He knew Iris was mad at the situation, not him. He got up and went to his office and got the notebook from his desk. He walked back to the kitchen and picking up a pair of scissors, he began to cut up the pages. A paper shredder wouldn't be thorough enough.

"After Wally's grounding is up, I'll take him out to Jay's and Joan's place and we'll show how to control his powers," Barry said shortly.

"And then what? We both know why he did this. Someday he's going to put on a mask and go running after his hero," Iris snapped. She shut a cabinet door too hard and the dishes inside trembled.

"That someday is going to be sooner rather than later," Barry said more to himself. The news out of Star City and Gotham City had been full of nothing, but Green Arrow's and Batman's new protégés. Speedy wasn't much older than Wally and Robin was two years younger.

Barry flinched at the idea of Wally out on the streets fighting crime, fighting the good yet never- ending fight that broke heroes if they were a second too slow.

"You're not thinking of letting Wally out with a mask, are you?" Iris cried in horror at the suggestion. She could barely handle Barry putting on a mask, but she wouldn't allow Wally to.

"I'm thinking that Wally will try it by himself. He's clearly willing to wait for a chance to do something stupid when we're not around," Barry answered.

"So what are we supposed to do? Lock him in his room for his own safety?" Iris snapped.

"No, that wouldn't do any good. He can probably vibrate his molecules through solid objects," Barry said off-handedly.

"Barry!" Iris shouted. He was taking this too well; on the surface at least. "What are we going to do? What kind of childhood can he have? What if someone finds out?" Iris said and began to cry. "We almost lost him once. I can't go through that again."

Barry pulled his wife into a hug. "No one will ever find out. I'll keep him safe, I promise."

runninghome

Wally laid on his bed on his stomach. He stared at the floor. He didn't regret his decision. He was going to be a superhero. Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry clearly thought being a superhero was okay. Otherwise Uncle Barry wouldn't be running around the city in a bright red costume that screamed: 'Shoot at me!'

Speaking of costumes, he needed one. Wally didn't want it all red like his uncle's. Maybe red and blue?...No. He'd figure it out later. He had bigger problems at the moment. What was he supposed to say to Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry?

He had known when he was in the tree they would have stopped him had they been there. That was why he had waited until they weren't home. He'd known what he was doing was wrong, making everything worse. It was one thing to do something wrong and not know it was wrong, but knowing it was wrong and doing it anyway got him in a lot more trouble.

There was a knock at the door. Wally didn't really want to come out of his room, but that wasn't going to fly, not with how much trouble he was in. He'd lost his aunt's and uncle's trust and with that he also lost any or all privileges.

"Yes?" Wally answered.

Aunt Iris opened the door. "It's time for supper," she said shortly. Her eyes were a little red and she didn't look too happy.

"Aunt Iris?" Wally asked in a whisper.

"Yes?" Iris stopped in the door way.

"Are you and Uncle Barry going to send me away?" Wally asked. He was terrified of losing his home. He'd been trying not to think about it.

Aunt Iris looked surprised. "Of course not. We love you, and you're part of our family," she said.

Wally relaxed and at once began to down play his fears. "Who wouldn't love me? I'm wonderful."

Iris laughed half heartedly. "Come on. Supper is getting cold, and if we leave your uncle down there too long, there won't be any left for us."

That was the first time Wally realized that it was so easy to put on a mask and pretend that he was confident and unafraid. He didn't want anyone to see when he was sad or scared. He could smile when he was sad, so there was no reason he couldn't laugh when he was afraid.

Wally followed his aunt downstairs. Dinner was very quiet that night. Wally got the feeling Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris had been fighting, and worse he knew the fight was his fault. They wouldn't have been upset if he'd gotten struck by lightning and gotten super powers. Wally almost smiled at how ridiculous that sounded in his head. It looked like that was what his life was going to be like from now on.

After finishing supper, Wally was about to go to his room, when Uncle Barry called him back to the table. He should have known he wasn't going to get off that easy. His uncle's anger rant in the car didn't qualify as a talk about what he had done wrong, plus there was the little fact that he had super speed now, so that was just going to make this unpleasant lecture longer than it would have been otherwise.

"We need to talk about a few things," Barry began seriously. "And not just about what you did."

Wally looked fixedly at the table.

"First of all, you can't tell anyone about this. Are we clear?" Barry asked.

Wally nodded. For once he didn't feel like talking.

"Before you experimented on yourself, did you tell anyone who I am? I need you to be completely honest with me."

"I didn't tell anyone," Wally answered. Who would he tell? The only people he really trusted were his aunt, uncle and a few friends, but he wasn't stupid. He knew better than to go running around telling every kid on the block that his uncle was the Flash.

Barry sighed in relief, and Iris calmed down as well.

"How did you get into that safe? And where did you get the chemicals?" Barry asked. He had a pretty good idea of both, but Wally had to admit to what he did. He wasn't going to get out of this so easy. He had to know what he did was wrong, and it wouldn't be tolerated.

"I guessed the code was yours and Aunt Iris's wedding date and I…..stole the chemicals from your lab at the station," Wally answered. This was torture. He didn't think his uncle was going to give him the third degree.

"Wallace!" Iris said in horror. Didn't Wally see where stealing led? His father was in jail for murder because he'd started stealing.

Wally didn't see how this could get much wore. He wanted to run out of the house, but that wouldn't do any good. He'd still be in trouble.

Barry's face hardened. There was no way he was going to let Wally end up like his dad. Now that he had super powers, Wally would be able to steal with no trouble at all, and he had already had a great role model for that. "If you ever steal from me or anyone else ever again, I will spank you. Are we clear?" Barry didn't like punishing Wally, but he couldn't just do whatever he wanted. He didn't like grounding, because that made home a place someone was forced to be. Barry would change Wally's grounding so that he had to go with Iris and him everywhere.

Wally nodded. He hadn't liked to steal, and he wasn't ever going to do it again. Plus the threat of getting spanked wasn't something he wanted to put to the test.

Barry wasn't done yet. "I told you earlier that your metabolism is faster. So is your mind, and if you're not careful, you can start talking at the speed your mind is moving. That will be a dead giveaway. You'll have to watch yourself when you're in a hurry. It's easy to go into an abnormally fast run."

"I'm going to take you out to Jay's place. He was the first Flash, and he taught me to control and use my powers," Barry said. What was he doing? He honestly had no clue what he was supposed to say. This situation wasn't exactly in any parenting book. He and Iris were new parents, and they were figuring this out as they went. Hopefully they didn't ruin Wally's life along the way. "From now on you'll have to be more watchful, when you're around other people."

"Why?" Wally asked.

Barry felt better with Wally asking questions than him sitting there staring at the table. Had he been too hard on Wally on the way home? No. Wally needed to know how serious what he had done was. But all the same, Barry should have given himself time to think before he started shouting.

"Because we don't know if anyone at the hospital realized what happened to you. If they did, then we have a problem. You could be attacked," Barry explained. The idea of people coming after Wally because of his super speed was terrifying.

"Do you know what to do if someone tries to take you?" Iris asked. She was surprised they hadn't asked Wally this before. The ten year old had been put in a situation where calling the police was not allowed under any circumstances. He needed to know that the police were to be trusted.

"Call for help, and try to get away," Wally said shortly. Everyone knew that. He didn't much like to think about that kind of stuff happening. It was too scary.

"Good, but what would you do if you knew someone was following you?" Barry asked. He didn't want Wally to be scared of every person he met, but he needed to at least be on the lookout for this kind of thing. He was a target now whether he saw it or not. Being aware of this could mean the difference between life and death for him.

"Try to lose them in a crowd. If that doesn't work, I'd stay near other people, I guess," Wally said. He wasn't at all sure of his answer.

Barry nodded. "After you learn how to use your powers, it won't be hard to lose someone without them seeing what you are." He was avoiding the other thing he and Iris had to talk with Wally about. He would rather Iris do all the talking, when it came to that.

Barry caught Iris's eyes, and she nodded her understanding.

"There's another thing we need to talk about," Iris said. "Your father's trial is coming up. The prosecution and the defense are both asking you to testify for them," Iris said gently. They had been putting off telling Wally about this. It was so hard to know what to do.

Wally was quiet for a few moments. "The defense is for my dad and the prosecution is against him, right?" he asked.

Iris nodded. "Yes." The justice system wasn't the easiest thing to understand, but that at least made sense.

"I can only speak for one of them?" Wally asked. He wanted his dad to be punished for what he had done, but he also wanted to see him again.

"Yes. You'll be asked a lot of tough questions and whatever side you are on, the other side will try to discredit what you say," Barry explained. He personally didn't want Wally to testify at all, but that got into a lot of complicated stuff that ended with Wally being forced to testify, and Barry really didn't what it to go that far.

"Dad and the others should go to prison. I'll tell them what Dad told me about the robberies, and the man he killed," Wally said finally. If he was going to be a hero someday he couldn't let his dad get away with what he had done. It wouldn't be fair to that man's family.

The three of them were silent for what felt like a long time. Each of them were wrapped up in their own thoughts.

"There's one more thing we wanted to ask you," Iris said breaking the quiet. "You don't have to decide tonight or for a while yet. We just want you to be thinking about it," she paused. "Your uncle and I would like to adopt you." Iris and Barry had been talking while Wally was in the hospital and decided that Wally was so much part of their little family that they might as well make it official, providing Wally didn't hate the idea.

Wally was a little surprised. He was going to say, 'yes', when a few thoughts struck him. "What about my mom?" he asked.

"We contacted her. She said she would like to see you again, but she thinks it would be best for you if she gave up custody," Barry said. Saying it like that sounded so heatless, but it was the only way to explain it.

Wally just nodded. That hurt a little, okay a lot, but his mom hadn't wanted to leave him, just his dad. Besides she wanted to see him, which counted for something, right? There was a difference between her just giving up custody of him and never wanting to see him again, and her giving up custody of him was because she was trying to do what was best for him. The next question he had to ask wasn't going to be very fun, but nothing about this day had been very good to begin with.

"Do you want to adopt me because of my powers and because I know Uncle Barry is Flash?" he asked. He didn't think his aunt and uncle were like that, but he knew better than to put too much faith in people. They would just hurt him when he wasn't expecting it. Plus he knew who his uncle was. That made him a serious problem if they thought he would tell. When his dad first started stealing he hadn't liked for him to leave the house, and he had demanded to know what Wally had said to anyone he had talked to.

"Of course not," Iris answered. She was a little horrified that Wally would even think that of her and Barry, but he was used to people acting for their own benefit, so why should he think any different of them?

"Iris and I decided we wanted to adopt you while you were in the hospital, before we knew you had gotten your powers. We wouldn't make you stay if you didn't want to be here," Barry explained. Iris said there was family in Keystone, who would be willing to take Wally, but Barry didn't much like that idea. He got the impression that they would only take him, so they wouldn't look bad or feel guilty. Barry was a little hurt that Wally thought he and Iris would use him for his powers, but what did he expect? His nephew had been living with a man who would have no doubt would have taken advantage of Wally's super speed.

Wally sat thinking about that they had said. He wanted to stay here. They loved him, even though he had stolen from Uncle Barry. They didn't hate him for that or think he was like his dad. He looked up at his aunt and uncle. "I would like you to adopt me."


	6. Chapter 6

The day of the trial came. Wally was honestly terrified. Aunt Iris said everything would be fine; all he had to do was sit by the judge and tell the jury what he knew. He'd get asked some questions, and then they could go home. The one problem was his dad was going to be there. He hadn't seen him in over a month and he wouldn't be allowed to talk to him until after the trial was over.

All four of the thieves had turned on each other after they were arrested in hopes of getting lighter sentences. Wally knew since his dad had been the one to pull the trigger, he'd most likely get the most time, but the others hadn't done anything to stop it and hadn't done anything after- wards, so they were complicit in the murder.

Wally stood by the front door, waiting for Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris. When they came downstairs they were both dressed nicely. He had to be in his best clothes, too. He didn't much like it. He was uncomfortable. His burns hurt, and he was nervous. Not a fun combo.

Uncle Barry said he and Aunt Iris would take him out to Jay's and Joan's farm, just outside of Central City after they were done at the court house. Wally would be able to run as much and as fast as he wanted. He hadn't had a chance to try his powers other than when he was in the hospital which didn't really count.

"You ready to go, Buddy?" Uncle Barry asked. He had the car keys in one hand.

"Yes," Wally said shortly. He wanted to go hide in his room and not come out for a month, but that wasn't really an option.

They went outside and got in the car. The ride to the court house was silent. Wally knew his aunt was upset and didn't want to talk about it. He understood how she felt. He didn't want to talk about it either, but the difference was he had to talk about it.

They walked up to the court house. It was so big and intimidating. The three of them walked into the courtroom. Uncle Barry led the way to some seats near the front of the room. Other people were gathering in the room as well. Wally knew the people on the other side of the room were the family of the man who had been killed. He didn't want to think about them, but what he said would help put his dad away. Maybe then they wouldn't hate him.

Then Wally saw his dad. He was led into the room by a guard, and there was a woman in a business suit next to him. They sat down at one of the desks that faced where the judge would be sitting. Wally didn't know what to think or how to feel. He wanted to get out of that room and get as far away as he could, and yet he wanted to see his dad and talk to him.

"All please rise for the Honorable Judge Miller," a man who was standing by the judge's desk said shortly.

Everyone got to their feet as the judge walked into the room from a door at the front of the room and sat down. Everyone sat down again. After that Wally got a little confused as to what was going on. A man at the desk on the other side of the room was telling the jury everything his dad had done wrong and the woman who was sitting with his dad was trying to make it not sound so bad. Not that that was really working.

After a while of this the man or the prosecutor called Wallace West came to the stand as a witness. Wally saw his dad turn to look at him, but he didn't look back. He didn't want to think about what he was going to have to say. It would make his dad look like a cold blooded killer, but he was, wasn't he?

Wally went up to the seat by the judge. He knew everyone in the large room was looking at him. It made him feel so small and vulnerable. The jury was watching him like hawks, and so were the victim's family, his dad and everyone else. To think he had hated to have his class all looking at him. What he wouldn't give to be back in Ms. Kats' class room with every kid in class staring at him because there were holes in his clothes or shoes?

The man, who told everyone to stand up, brought out a Bible and Wally had to put his right hand on it and raise his other.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing, but the truth?" the man asked shortly.

"Yes," Wally said. He wanted to run out of that room and not stop running until he was home, where he was safe and no one made him scared.

The man took the Bible away, and Wally sat down. The prosecutor came up to the little box-like space Wally was sitting at.

"Wallace, you know how important it is to tell the truth, don't you?" the man asked.

"Yes," Wally answered. He was ten not two, and he knew the difference. He guessed he was going to be treated like he was an idiot the whole time he was there, so he might as well get used to it.

"Can you tell me how you found out that your dad killed Mr. Boyd?"

Before Wally could answer his dad's lawyer jumped to her feet. "Objection. Mr. Cartwright is implying that my client murdered Mr. Boyd. We are here to figure that out," she said shortly. Wally had heard Mr. Cartwright call her Mrs. Roger.

"Sustained," the judge answered.

Wally had no idea what he was supposed to say. He didn't get a chance to try to figure it out, because Mr. Cartwright asked him another question.

"Why don't you just start at the beginning and tell us what happened?"

Wally mouth was dry as he began. "We didn't have any money, so Dad started stealing. He told me not to tell anyone."

"How long was this going on before your father was arrested?" Cartwright asked.

"A few months. The last day of school I heard about the murder when my aunt and uncle came to visit. Dad had been out that night. After they left I asked Dad if he killed the store clerk and he said he had," Wally said. He glanced at his dad for a second before looking away. There was no emotion on his father's face.

"Did you believe him?" Cartwright asked.

"Yes," Wally said. He wished he didn't sound as scared as he felt.

"Did he seem upset or sad that he said he had killed someone?"

"Objection," Mrs. Roger snapped. "Mr. Cartwright is trying to use the witness's perception of the situation to sway the jury. His age has to be taken into consideration. A child could easily misunderstand what was being said."

Wally gave her a dirty look. Of course he knew what had been going on. He was on the verge of telling her that, when Uncle Barry caught his eyes and gave a slight shake of his head. He didn't want Wally to say anything to the woman that was rude.

"Overruled," the judge said in the same monotone. "Proceed, Mr. Cartwright."

"Thank you, Judge. Wallace?"

"He wasn't sad at all. He didn't seem like he cared until I got upset. I asked him if he wore gloves, and if the gun was his. He said that he had, and that the gun wasn't his," Wally said.

"What happened after that?" Cartwright asked.

Wally shrugged. "Nothing. Dad went out with Max, Mark and Frank that night, and he got home around three in the morning."

"Thank you, Wallace," Mr. Cartwright said. "Can you tell me about the night your dad was arrested?'

Wally wanted to go back to his aunt and uncle, but he couldn't leave his seat until he was told he could. He nodded. "Dad, Max, Frank and Mark came running in around one. They were all mad. Dad told me to go upstairs. I could hear them all shouting at each other, and then I heard the police sirens. Then Dad came upstairs and told the others they weren't using me as a hostage. Max started telling Dad that everything would be fine, and they weren't really going to hurt me. Dad still wouldn't agree. So Max told Dad that if he was arrested I would be put in foster care. Dad told me that he couldn't let the police take me away from him. After that Frank's phone started ringing. It was Captain Bromell. Max told him that if he and his men didn't back off they were going to kill me. Max made me tell the Captain that I was okay. We all went downstairs. A little while after that the Flash came and knocked out my dad and the others. He took me out to Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry, and we went to the police station. I told a detective what had happened-that Dad, Mark, Frank and Max were stealing and that Dad killed someone."

"Did you believe your dad would have hurt you if Flash hadn't saved you?" Mr. Cartwright asked.

"No, but I think Max would have tried," Wally answered.

"Don't you think your dad would have protected you?"

Wally could see that Mrs. Roger was about to object so he answered before she could. "Dad wouldn't have let Max kill me," he said shortly.

"Thank you, Wallace," Mr. Cartwright said and went back to his seat.

Mrs. Roger got up and walked up to Wally. She was most likely a nice person, but Wally didn't like her very much.

"Wallace, did anyone tell you what to say today?" Mrs. Roger asked.

"Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry just said to tell the truth," Wally answered.

"I understand you were in an accident last week."

Wally didn't know if this was a question or a statement, so he answered as best he could. "Yes, I was struck by lightning." He ignored the surprised looks he was getting from the jury. Didn't they have anything better to do than gawk at him?

"Have you been having trouble remembering things since then?" Roger asked.

"Objection," Cartwright interjected. "The witness is in no position to assess his own health."

"Sustained," Judge Miller said.

Wally was starting to get annoyed with all this. He knew what his health was; he'd had people at the hospital telling him all the time how great it was that he was almost completely unhurt, but there wasn't anything he could do. From the look on Mrs. Roger's face he wasn't the only one who was annoyed.

"What time did your dad leave the house on the night of Mr. Boyd's death?" Hopefully this kid would mess up on the timeline, but she didn't really think he would. She knew as well as anyone that Rudolph West was guilty, but she had to defend him whether she liked it or not.

"As soon as it got dark, around seven, I think," Wally answered. He hadn't paid much attention at the time.

"And what time would you say he got back?"

"Two," Wally answered. He remembered because his dad usually wasn't back that early.

"And how do you know that? Did you hear him come in?"

"I was up waiting for him. I always waited for him," Wally answered.

"Did he say anything at the time that made you think something had gone wrong?" Mrs. Roger asked.

"No. He just told me hello and to go to bed," Wally answered.

"You said you think Max would have killed you. How do you know Max wasn't the one who shot Mr. Boyd, and your father blamed himself and that's why he told you he killed someone?" Mrs. Roger asked.

"Dad said he did it. He wouldn't have said that unless he had. Dad wouldn't hurt me, but I don't think he'd mind hurting someone else," Wally answered. He caught a glimpse of his dad's face, and he knew he'd spoken the truth. Rudolph wouldn't dream of hurting one hair on his son's head, but he didn't much care about anyone else.

"That's all," Mrs. Roger said shortly, turning away.

Wally looked over at Miller, asking if he could go. The judge gave a little nod, and Wally quickly went back to his seat. Aunt Iris squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. Uncle Barry smiled kindly.

"You did well," Barry whispered. He wished his nephew hadn't had to go through that, but what Wally said had made an impression on the jury. Barry had watched them. They didn't like Rudolph's lawyer, and they felt sorry for the family of Mr. Boyd and for Wally. The evidence against Rudolph was almost impossible to deny. He had means, motive, and opportunity. Add that to Wally's testimony, and it was a pretty clear case. Barry didn't understand why Rudolph hadn't pled guilty to save himself and Wally the pain of going through this.

The trial seemed to go on and on. Barry was starting to think about moving their visit to Jay and Joan to the next day. He'd ask Iris after they got out of here if she just wanted to pick up something for supper and head home. Plus he didn't think Wally would want to go meet anyone at the moment.

Wally glanced over at Mr. Boyd's family. He wanted to tell them how sorry he was. If he had only told someone, Mr. Boyd would be alive. But it wasn't his fault. Wally had to keep telling himself that. It was his dad's fault.

It was almost four by the time the prosecution and the defense finished making their opposing arguments. The trial would pick back up tomorrow. Wally didn't want to go through that again, but maybe by then the jury would have reached a decision.

Everyone slowly filed out of the courtroom. Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris were walking down the hall to the front door, but Wally stopped by the doorway. A woman stepped out of the room. Wally stepped up to her.

"Are you Mr. Boyd's mom?" Wally asked. She was an older lady, with a mass of gray hair piled on top of her head. The man Wally assumed to be her husband was next to her. They both looked heart broken and tired.

"Yes," Mrs. Boyd answered shortly. Her voice was strained and overwhelmed.

"I'm sorry for what my daddy did," Wally said, looking at the floor. He knew he should have just followed his aunt and uncle, but he wanted Mr. Boyd's family to know that he was really sorry. He wished he could have done something to stop Mr. Boyd from being killed.

Mrs. Boyd and Mr. Boyd only looked down at him for a moment before one of them answered.

"Thank you, dear," Mrs. Boyd said softy. "I thought my family and I were the only ones to suffer at your father's actions, but I see now we aren't alone."

"Thank you for what you said. That couldn't have been easy," Mr. Boyd said. He took his wife's arm, and they walked away.

Wally quickly caught up to his aunt and uncle. He reached them in time to hear they had decided to go Jay's and Joan's farm for a little while. They got in the car and drove out of the parking lot.  
"Where did you go?" Iris asked. She had seen Wally hanging back, but she assumed he had wanted some space. She wanted some herself. It would be nice to walk around the farm and to talk to Joan and to forget about the trial for a while.

"I stopped to talk to Mr. Boyd's parents," Wally answered. He watched the trees and houses go by. He would have liked to just go home, but Uncle Barry really wanted him to meet Jay and Joan. They sound like nice people, and Wally didn't think they would care that his dad was on trial for murder.

"Really?" Iris asked. Crap. What had Wally said? More importantly what had they said to Wally? She knew that people could be spiteful and in this situation it was understandable, but she didn't want Wally to get more hurt because he'd gone and talked to a grieving family.

"What did they say?" Barry asked. He shouldn't have let Wally stay behind, or he should have seen what he was up to. He should have known it was something like this.

Wally told them what the couple had said. That had made him feel somewhat better. They had understood and didn't hate him. He thought he could understand what they were going through. He was losing someone he cared about, but they had lost their son in a different way.

It wasn't hard to guess what the jury would decide. Wally's dad was going to prison. It was just a question of how long. Wally didn't really want to think about right now. How ever long it was didn't matter. Things would never be the way they used to be and part of Wally was okay with that. He had never been as happy at his old home as he was with his aunt and uncle. He looked forward to them all being at home, together. He didn't feel like he had to go hide in his room or that he was in the way.

Uncle Barry pulled onto the dusty road. Wally could see a big red barn a little way up the road. As they got closer a house came into view. The whole place looked like something in a book. The house was painted white and had deep green shutters on every one of the many windows. There were a few rocking chairs on the long front porch. There was a picket fence that ran around the house, and there was a small flower garden just inside the fence.

Barry parked the car. He had always loved to go out to the Garrick's farm. It was so quiet and peaceful, and Jay and Joan were always glad to see Iris and him. He was sure they would love Wally. Barry had wanted them to meet him sooner, but they couldn't work out a time that worked for both of the couples until now.

Barry got out of the car just as Joan came out of the house. She smiled and waved them into the house and then quickly disappeared back inside. They walked up the porch steeps and Iris opened the door.

"I'm in here," Joan called. She was in the kitchen.

Wally followed his aunt and uncle to the other room. He had heard about Mr. and Mrs. Garrick. Mr. Garrick was his uncle's mentor as well as the first Flash. The farm house was full of the smell of something baking. Wally thought it was some kind of cake or bread.

Mrs. Garrick was just pulling a cake pan out of the oven when they walked in.

"Hello," she said warmly. "Sorry I didn't stay outside to greet you, but I didn't want to burn the cake. Jay doesn't much like burnt food."

"It's fine, Joan," Iris said. "I understand. Whenever I burn something or spill on the stove, Barry walks in and asks what's burning, as if I burn the food every time I cook."

"Just making sure the house isn't on fire," Barry laughed.

Iris rolled her eyes. Barry was trying to get her to forget about how bad today was. "Joan, this is Wally," she said gesturing to her nephew, who was standing in the doorway.

Wally came forward and shook Joan's hand politely. "Hello."

"Hello, Wally. It's good to meet you. I've heard a lot about you," Mr. Garrick said.

Wally cringed. Anyone who watched the news knew about him and had an opinion of him and his family before they even talked to him.

"Your uncle tells me you love science," Mrs. Garrick said.

"Yes, ma'am," Wally nodded.

Mrs. Garrick laughed. "Just call me Joan, dear."

There was the sound of a door opening and closing again.

"Hello?" a man's voice called. Wally could hear heavy work boots walking through the house.

"We're in the kitchen," Joan answered.

Jay walked in. He was in his early seventies, but that didn't stop him from keeping his farm going. After Barry had taken over the role of Flash, Jay had moved to the country and bought his dream home. He and Joan were happy to be out of the city. It was quiet and homey away from the hustle and bustle of Central.

Jay shook Barry's hand and gave Iris a hug before turning to Wally. "So this is the newest member of the family." By 'family' he meant family of superheroes. Iris had told Joan what had happened and Joan had told him. Jay was sorry for Wally. The kid couldn't very well have a normal life now, but part of him was relieved. Barry would need some back up, and when the kid got older he'd be there to make sure no idiot took a shot at Flash and got lucky.

"Hi," Wally said. He was a little more comfortable now. They both seemed very nice, and Mr. Garrick was the first Flash, which was really cool.

"It's good to meet you," Jay said and turned to Barry. "Why don't we head out and let the ladies talk," he grinned. Jay doubted his wife and Iris would even notice they had gone out. They were already talking, about what he had no idea since they seemed to jump from topic to topic faster than even a former speedster could keep up with.

A little while later Wally found himself in a large field. He was kind of scared to test out his powers, and to top that off with was the fact he didn't really want to do anything at the moment other than be left alone. Everything that had been said in the trial was ringing in his ears.

"Okay, Wally. Just start running," Uncle Barry said looking down at Wally.

Wally nodded. He took off at a normal speed, but seconds later he was shooting across the field like an arrow. He couldn't believe how fast he was going. The trees seemed to blend into the ground. Everything else was moving so slowly. A bird in front of him looked as if it would fall out of the sky because it wasn't flapping its wings. It finally did move, but it was so slow Wally could see every detail. He was past the bird and now came a small problem. How was he supposed to stop? If he just planted his feet, he would go flying. He tried to slow down gradually, but he tripped over his own feet and went head over heels. He ended up pretty far from where he had tripped, lying in the ground and covered in dirt.

He sat up. His uncle and Jay were little specks on the other side of the property. Uncle Barry was already headed his way. He ran like a bullet, and he didn't have any trouble stopping.

"Are you okay," Uncle Barry asked, helping Wally to his feet.

Wally smiled. "Yep." He hadn't minded that he'd fallen. He'd felt so free while he was running, like nothing could stop him. All that mattered was the next step. Everything else was unimportant except the next few seconds. "How did I do? Other than face planting."

"Good. You can run almost as fast as I can," Barry answered. "As you get a little older you'll get faster, and when you really push yourself, you'll get even faster."

Wally just smiled. He hadn't been this happy since Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris said they wanted to adopt him. To think that this day had started out so horribly. It didn't seem to matter when he compared that with what he could do.

He dusted himself off and ran back across the field with his uncle right next to him. Wally tried again to stop, and he would have gone tumbling the same as before, but Uncle Barry caught him.

"Stopping will get easier the more you practice," Jay said kindly.

A few hours later the three of them walked into the house and were met with Joan ordering them outside because of the dirt that they were all covered in. Aunt Iris brought a blanket out and the five of them had a picnic under the huge oak tree in the front yard. In Wally's opinion it was the best picnic ever. Everything was so perfect, like that was how it had been and how it always would be. This was his family, and he didn't have to worry about how his mom had left, the trial tomorrow or what anyone might think of him or his family. No matter what happened tomorrow, he had a family that loved him and didn't care who his dad was. People could think whatever they wanted; they didn't know how amazing his family was.


	7. Chapter 7

The next day Wally, Uncle Barry, and Aunt Iris went back to the court house. The trial dragged on for three weeks before the prosecution and the defense rested their cases. The jury only deliberated for two hours before coming back. The verdict of 'guilty on all charges' rang in Wally's ears. He was relieved and pained at the same time. Relief that the trial was finally over and pained at the sentencing that was to come.

Rudolph West would do thrity-five years for second degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful possession of a stolen fire arm, unlawful imprisonment, twelve counts of breaking and entering, twelve counts of burglary and a slew of other charges, with the possibility of parole after fifteen years. Wally thought they could have left out the unlawful imprisonment charge, but Aunt Iris said it was important that his dad get in trouble for taking him hostage.

"Do you have anything to state for the record?" the judge asked, looking down at Rudolph.

"Yes, your honor. May I face the family of Mr. James Boyd?" Rudolph asked.

"You may."

Barry watched as his brother-in-law turned to look at the Boyd family.

"I know there's nothing I can say to make up for what I did, but I am truly sorry for taking your son from you. I hope it is some consolation to you that I will be paying for what I did for the rest of my life," Rudolph turned back to the judge. The only emotions Barry could identify were sadness and badly hidden anger.

Two guards led Rudolph away. Wally looked steadily at the floor. He had known this was going to be painful, but he wasn't ready for how painful. He wanted to get out of there. He wanted to go home and be left alone.

The three of them left the court house as soon as possible. Barry had just pulled out of the parking lot when Wally started cry, and then Iris started too. It was a very unpleasant ride home. Barry had planned to just pick something up at a fast food restaurant on the way home, but with Iris and Wally, he thought it would be best to just go home and get something to eat later.

When they got home, Iris and Wally went and flopped on the couch. After Barry put away the keys, he sat down next to his wife and nephew. They sat in silence for a little while before Barry turned on the TV.

"We, the jury, find the defendant guilty," the character on the old black and white movie proclaimed loudly.

Barry changed the channel as quickly as he could, but Iris and Wally were already crying again. What were the odds of a law movie being on that channel at the very moment he turned on the TV? Barry found Jurassic Park as he flipped through the channels. That would be good. There was nothing about going to prison in that plus Wally liked the dinosaurs.

"I'm going to go pick up some supper. What do you want?" Barry asked. He would do anything to get their minds of the trial.

Iris wiped her tears away and pulled Wally closer to her on the couch. "Anything is fine with me. What sounds good to you?" she asked Wally with fake cheer in her voice.

"Pizza Hut?" Wally suggested.

Barry headed out and came home twenty minutes later to find Wally and Iris just as he had left them. They had dinner in the family room that night. Iris didn't like doing that. It was important to her that they eat at the table as a family without the TV in the background, but she didn't really want to get up and set the table or do anything at the moment for that matter.

They ate in silence. None of them had anything to say, and the TV was on so it removed the need to talk. Wally just wanted to go to bed and forget today had ever happened. Now that the trial was over would Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris take him to see his dad? Did he even want to see him? Wally would figure that out later. He didn't want to think about that now or ever really.

Five years from now he'd be fifteen, and his dad would still be in prison. There was something about that thought that scared Wally. He had to remind himself that he had a home, and he was with people who loved him.

When would his mom come to see him? Would she even come? Wally wasn't going to get his hopes up. He would just be disappointed when and if things didn't work out the way he wanted, but everything was happening for a reason. If he didn't see his mom or dad again that was the way it was supposed to be, even if he didn't like it. The thought that everything was part of a plan, and that there was no such thing as chance made Wally feel better. He didn't know why; it just did.

All three of them went to bed earlier than usual that night. Iris and Barry had work, and Wally just wanted to get the day over with so they could go back to their happy, carefree lives.

runninghome

Wally looked up at the high fences that surrounded the prison that was just outside of Central City. He wondered how he could have thought the courthouse was intimidating. It was nothing compared to this place. Aunt Iris didn't look very happy and neither didn't Uncle Barry, but who could be happy around this place. Wally almost wanted them to turn around and go home, but his wanting to see his dad outweighed his fear.

It had been almost a month since the trial, and it had taken Barry and Iris all of that time to think about taking Wally to see Rudolph. Their nephew hadn't asked to see his dad until recently, and so they had finally decided to take him. They had talked and this was not going to be the beginning of regular visits. If Wally wanted to talk to his dad he could call him, but they didn't want their nephew to see him all the time. Plus who wanted to bring a ten year old to a prison? Barry could see that Wally was terrified of the place. They weren't going to put Wally through this, and they wouldn't let him put himself through this. It wasn't worth it.

They went through security as quickly as possible. Other people were there to visit family or friends. Most of them had the same fake smile carved into their faces. Others looked angry or sad. The place made Barry want to turn around and leave.

The three of them sat at a table waiting for Rudolph to be brought out of his cell. No one looked at each other or spoke. There must have been fourteen people in the visiting room, and Barry couldn't believe how quiet it was. It took him a second to realize that these people wanted to pretend there wasn't anything odd about the guards who were standing around the room or the distant sound of chains being dragged across the cold cement floor. To them this wasn't going to be a prison for the time they were there.

When Rudolph did appear he didn't look any different when he had at the trial, but instead of a suit he now wore the same gray jumpsuit that every other prisoner was wearing. Barry was disgusted when the convicted man smiled at them. He was really happy. What had happened to 'I know there's nothing I can say to make up for what I did, but I am truly sorry for taking your son from you. I hope it is some consolation to you that I will be paying for what I did for the rest of my life'?

That had just been a show. Rudolph wasn't sorry for a second. Something Wally had said came to mind. 'Dad won't hurt me, but I don't think he would care if he hurt anyone else.' Well, that was clearly true. Yeah, they were never bringing Wally back here. He didn't need to be around his father for any amount of time other than what was necessary

Wally's dad sat down across from them. The guard cuffed his hands to the table and walked away to let them talk in private, or at least as private as was possible with cameras covering every inch of the room.

"Hello, Iris, Barry. Hi, buddy. How've you been?" Rudolph asked.

Wally didn't answer for a moment. His dad seemed to think everything was fine. Well, it wasn't. Wally hadn't come there for a 'nice little visit'. He had come to see if his dad was sorry, if he cared about what he had put him through and from the look on his face, he either didn't know or didn't care.

"I'm getting better. How are you?" Wally answered.

Barry saw a momentary pause in Rudolph's eyes. He couldn't help but pick up on what his son was talking about. Barry glanced at his nephew and realized how angry he was, but he was doing a pretty good job of hiding it. Barry didn't know what he would say if he was in Wally's situation.

"I'm good," Rudolph answered. Oddly enough, he didn't mind being stuck there. He didn't have to worry about finding a job or Mary or even Wally. The only thing on his mind was not making the wrong people mad, and when that was the only thing he had to do, it wasn't that hard. "You'll be starting school soon, right?" What was hard however, was keeping up this very strained conversation. Rudolph knew Iris was mad at him. How could he miss it? She was glaring draggers at him. Barry was silent, but the silence said more than words could. What Rudolph couldn't understand was Wally. He was acting so weird. He was mad, but for some reason he was trying not to be. When it had just been Rudolph and his son, Wally hadn't been worried about letting his temper show. So what was with this repressed anger?

"Yes. I'm starting at Central Middle School the day after tomorrow," Wally said shortly. He looked closely at his dad for a few seconds. "I came here today to try to forgive you for what you did to Mr. Boyd and to me. I guess I expected you to be sorry, but whether you're sorry or not, I still have to forgive you. I blamed you for Mom leaving, for you leaving me alone all the time, and for everything you put me through. I know Mom wasn't just your fault now, but everything else shouldn't have happened, and that's on you. I'm still mad at you. Someday, maybe I won't be mad, and I hope so. I love you, and I forgive you," Wally said sadly. He wanted to go now. He had forgiven his dad, but that didn't mean he wanted to be around him.

Rudolph was in a word shocked. This wasn't the Wally he knew. His Wally wouldn't have said any of that. What had happened to the little ten year old who had trouble saying he was sorry and who would rather get teeth pulled than let go of a grudge? And what kind of ten year old talked like that? Had he really shut his eyes so tightly that he hadn't seen what he was doing was making Wally grow up faster than most kids? No, even when he was stealing Wally hadn't been like this. So where was this coming from? Was it because he had nearly died? Maybe.

Rudolph cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Thank you for forgiving me," he said finally. He had to think of something to talk about fast. "You've grown up a lot since….I was arrested."

Wally just nodded.

"Your uncle came and told me that you were struck by lightning. Do you… Have you…" Rudolph had no idea what to say.

"I haven't had any problems because of it, just some scars. I don't really remember what happened, except that I hurt and then I woke up in the hospital," Wally said. He realized he was going to have to do most or all of the talking. He had forgiven his dad, so he could talk to him with no trouble. He felt a surprising level of relief. He hadn't realized how much he'd been holding on to.

They talked for a while longer before Wally, Barry and Iris left. As they were about to walk out of the building, Wally felt as if something would stop him from leaving that horrible place just as he was about to escape it. He walked faster and got to the car before Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris.

They drove home, Barry talking all the way about how good Wally would do in his new school. Iris joined in. By the time they got home Wally was feeling better about going to see his dad. Now he just had to talk to his mom.

Wally got up early for his first day at his new school. He was nervous and excited at the same time. It took him less than five minutes to get ready. Super speed was really helpful when it came to pretty much everything, but especially getting ready to go somewhere.

Aunt Iris would drop him off, because the news studio was in the same direction as the school. Uncle Barry would be picking him after. Wally said he could go by himself, but his aunt and uncle said for the first few days they would drive him. With how busy both of their work schedules were, he'd have to go by himself at some point but not until he knew the way.

Wally got out of the car and waved good bye to his aunt. She waved back before driving away. The school looked pretty much the same as his old school. There was a teacher by the door to keep an eye on the kids who were coming in.

"Hi," the teacher said, as Wally was about to go inside. "You're Wallace West, right?"

Wally nodded. "Everyone just calls me Wally. What's your name?"

"I'm Mrs. Bridget Jackson. I'm going to be your math teacher," Bridget said kindly. Mr. and Mrs. Allen had come down to the school a few days ago to meet their nephew's fourth grade teachers. Bridget had met them. They seemed like a nice couple, and they were very interested in what Wally would be learning. Mrs. Allen had mentioned that her nephew had recently gone through several traumatic experiences but was doing well. She hadn't gone into any details, and Bridget thought it better not to ask. She found out later that Wally had been taken hostage by his father, who was charged with murder and three other criminals. He had been struck by lightning one week, and the next he had to testify in open court about the murder of the man that his father had robbed and killed.

All this had happened over the summer, so Bridget was ready to put up with any odd behavior. For her is was easier to understand why someone was doing something if she knew the reason behind it. She was in charge of twenty to thirty kids at a time, so that didn't leave a lot of time to get to know them.

One thing was for sure, Bridget wasn't going to put up with any crap. Last year had been difficult, mostly because a few of the kids thought it was okay to pick on anyone who was having trouble with school. There was no tolerance for bullies at Central Middle School. Everyone who had bullied another kid had been suspended and then expelled if their behavior continued. Wally would have a lot of things the other kids could hurt him with, but Bridget was hopeful everything would go smoothly.

Wally went to his class room and found a seat near the window. Had it only been three months ago that he had been sitting in a room similar to this one? With everything that had happened it felt like a life time ago. Everything had changed, some things for the better. Wally knew it was best for him to live with his aunt and uncle. He was happier with them than he had been with his mom and dad. It wasn't good to be around fighting all the time.

Wally liked his new school. Most of the kids were nice and so were the teachers. Plus next week they were going to the museum for their first field trip that year. That evening, at supper all he could talk about was how much fun he had had. That made Iris feel somewhat better. She had felt like she was just dumping him when she had dropped him off that morning.

"I have a surprise for you," Barry said to Wally after supper was over and the dishes were washed.

"What is it?" Wally asked. He couldn't imagine what his uncle had planned.

"Tomorrow I have a Justice League meeting. Speedy and Robin are going to be there, and I thought you might like to meet them," Barry said. Iris hadn't much liked the idea. It would just show Wally that others kids were heroes and then he would want to join, which was something she wasn't going to let happen. She had finally said it was okay.

Wally was bouncing off the walls for what was left of the day. He had wanted to meet the others heroes for a long time, but he hadn't thought it was a good idea to ask, not after all of the trouble he had caused. The next day seemed to drag on, but finally Uncle Barry got home from work. They left for the Watch Tower. It had been built in space after an attempted alien invasion. The League had gotten the tech to build Boom tubes, which were teleporters from the aliens. It was that invasion that had brought the Justice League into existence.

Wally and his uncle were the last ones there, which from the way everyone acted that seemed to be expected from The Fastest Man Alive. Barry showed his nephew to a large room with a couch and TV in it. Two other kids were sitting on the couch, playing video games.

"Wally, this is Speedy and Robin. I have to go. Behave and have fun," Barry said disappearing in streak of red. It was safe to say the meeting would be very boring.

"Hi," Wally said, a little shyly. These were real heroes, and he was just some kid who knew Flash and was hit by lightning. That didn't make him a hero, so to be honest he didn't really belong.

"Hi," Robin said smiling. "You want to play?" The black haired boy couldn't be more than eight or nine. His uniform looked like a traffic light with its bright colors. That gave Wally hope. If this small child could be a sidekick to the great Batman, what was stopping him from helping his uncle? The answer was one thing: Aunt Iris.

"Sure," Wally said and sat down.

Speedy didn't seem to notice the younger boy was there. He was about thirteen and wore a red costume. His bow was leaning against a nearby wall next to his quiver.

"Don't mind him," Robin said, glancing at the archer. "He's just annoyed that he's not allowed at the meeting. I don't know why. Meetings aren't any fun." They played the game for a while before they all got tired of it. They started playing truth or dare, which very rarely ends well, especially when it comes to superheroes.

Batman, Green Arrow and Flash went to get their wards and nephew, respectively. They found the three kids sitting on the floor. Speedy and Robin had taken their masks off.

"Robin!" Batman almost shouted. He sent a cold look in Wally's and Speedy's directions. Robin jumped and snatched his mask. He quickly put it back on his face and darted to his guardian's side. Batman gave dark looks to Flash and Green Arrow before storming away.

"Well, we're dead," Arrow said, flatly. He turned to look at Speedy. He'd taken Roy in almost a year ago now. He'd stressed the point over and over again that the thirteen year old was to never let anyone see his face when he was in uniform. Roy had always said he knew that and acted like it wasn't a big deal. "Home. Now," Green Arrow ordered. They would be having a very long talk later. "See you later, Barry."

"Later, Oliver," Barry said. He and Wally walked silently to the boom tubes. They didn't talk until they got home, and Wally was about to go to bed. "Okay," Barry said, rubbing his forehead. "Just tell me what happened."

"We were playing truth or dare and Speedy dared Robin to take his mask off. I didn't think it was a good idea, but I didn't say anything. Robin said he would if Speedy did, so they pulled their masks off at the same time," Wally explained.

"Do you know who they are?" Barry asked. Batman couldn't very well blame Wally for something he didn't do. It was Roy's fault.

Wally nodded. "Robin is Richard Grayson, Bruce Wayne's foster son, which means Mr. Wayne is Batman. Speedy is Roy Harper, Oliver Queen's foster son and Mr. Queen is Green Arrow. Am I in trouble?" Everyone knew who Grayson and Harper were. They'd both been taken in by billionaires and every reporter wanted to interview them. He'd heard his aunt mention Wayne and Queen before.

"No," Barry answered shaking his head. "But I think it's going to be a while before you come to another meeting."

Wally was disappointed to hear that. Robin was really cool, and Speedy wasn't so bad once he stopped acting like a jerk. He'd found kids like him and they would be his friends, even if it was a long time before he saw them again.

"You know not to tell anyone what you know, right?" Barry asked.

Wally nodded. It took him a few minutes to take in what he knew. It was kind of scary. He held peoples' secrets, their very lives in his hands. One slip up, one loose word, and they would most likely end up dead.

He told his uncle good night. His aunt came in and tucked him in. After meeting Robin and Speedy, Wally was sure he could be a hero just like them. This wasn't a game. It was serious and people were getting hurt or killed. Wally understood that, but it wasn't going to stop him for even a moment.

runninghome

It'd been a month since he'd been to the Justice League meeting, and he hadn't heard if he'd be allowed to go to another one. Wally looked up at the picture in the museum. His class was having its first field trip of the year. He'd been to this museum before with Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris, but he didn't mind going again. He liked stuff like this. Plus he got to move around, instead of sitting in a chair all day.

Suddenly alarms started going off all over the building. He heard people screaming, shouting and moments later the roar of a gun. Mrs. Jackson hurried them into a broom closet, but Wally made himself scarce behind a large statue of a man on a horse.

Seconds passed, but it felt like hours before six or seven armed people tramped through that room. Wally followed them carefully. He didn't know what he was going to do, but he planned on stopping the robbers. The armed men and women came to a smaller dark room that held diamonds on loan from the Gotham museum. They started breaking the gems out of their cases.

Wally acted quickly. He ran at one man and slid like he was going for home base. The man tripped over him and hit his head hard on the floor. Wally found a dark corner, where he couldn't be seen.

"What happened?" a woman snapped. They hadn't seen him yet. Hopefully he could keep this up long enough for the police to get there.

"Dan, are you okay?" a masked man said, shaking the knocked out man's shoulder. "Something's wrong with Dan."

"Get back to work," another man called angrily. "The police will be here soon."

They went back to work. Wally shot out again, this time getting two of the criminals before disappearing into the shadows.

"Someone's in here," the same woman said frantically. Out of nowhere they started shooting at all of the shadowy places. Wally jumped behind a support beam. A few bullets just missed him. Oddly, he wasn't even scared. He felt alive. It was probably just the adrenaline rush, but he couldn't rely on that forever. He'd wear out sooner or later.

The shooting stopped, almost as suddenly as it had started. Three were down and four to go.

"Did we get him?" one of them asked.

Wally dashed out and plowed his feet into the woman's knees. She fell to the ground, crying out in pain. He darted from one beam to the other. He was able to take out another thief before the remaining two ran from the room and out of the building, where the police had set up a perimeter and were preparing to go in.

Wally went back to his hiding place behind the statue. He waited for an adult to come looking for him, which didn't take long. He was led out along with a few other people. Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris were outside, standing behind yellow police tape. Wally saw the fear in their eyes and quickly waved to them, so they would see that he wasn't hurt.

"One of the robbers says there's something in there," Wally heard an officer say to another officer as he passed them. "Said it looked like the Flash, but smaller like a kid."

"KidFlash," the other officer laughed. "Well, at this point nothing would surprise me."

KidFlash. Wally liked it. It wasn't long before KidFlash was an expected sight whenever Flash was around. Wally loved being a hero. It had taken a lot of trouble to get there, but soon everyone knew about the small yellow blur that was just as dangerous as the red one. When Wally looked back, it had been a very long painful road and sometimes he wondered why he had to go through it all. When those thoughts came around, he'd just think of the faces of the people he'd saved. His parents had started the dominos falling to what he was to become and in some ways he was thankful for that, but his uncle and aunt had shown him what it really meant to save another life and give that person hope. No matter how dark things looked, how terrifying the battle, home would be waiting for him at the end of it all.

The End


End file.
